#ace of diamond imagine

[imaginetheteam]

White Day is soon

Send me a character and I'll post a headcanon on how they return your chocolate

[oydan]

Title: Childhood Friends

Pairing: Sanada Shunpei x OC

Warning: Angst. Alcoholism and abuse will be mentioned so please be aware for any sort of triggering content.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters let alone the entirety of Ace of the Diamond. I only own the OC characters mentioned.

A/N: Support by liking, commenting, reblogging my work. I do requests as well if anyone out there wants anything specific. Hit that follow button so we can interact.

Masterlist

It was a normal afternoon practice for Sanada. He decided that today was one of those special days he would show up to practice. Emiko was busy with her own practice and he was a bit bored just hanging out with his classmates. There was nothing out of the ordinary. He walked home from practice, back home in time for dinner, and sat beside his father on the couch to watch a baseball game that was on. Everything was normal for him. Until the doorbell rang throughout the small home of three.

He had a feeling it was just Emi stopping by like she normally did when her parents weren’t home. She didn’t like to say it out loud but she hated being home alone, so it didn’t bother the Sanada family whenever she would make her way over to their family home.

When he opened the door he was right to make assumptions but he was thrown off seeing her in tears. It wasn’t a trinkle or anything so miniscule rather, it was an ongoing flow of tears he had never seen from her before. Her violet eyes were puffy red along with a matching red nose from rubbing it so much, a red hand print imprinted onto her pale cheek, and her breathing was erratic. Like she had lost the wind in her lungs and was trying desperately to find it. He didn’t know what caused this but he gripped her close into his arms and let her cry while she held him close.

He was wrong to assume that was just a normal day. Instead, that was the worst day of Emi’s life. Once she calmed down he laid her in the guest room with a futon she borrowed pretty often when her parents were arguing. He found out later that her father had left their family to pursue his soccer career in America where he had met another woman. She had become pregnant with his child and he just up and left thinking that America was his new “destiny”. Sanada knew that her father always had his head up in the clouds but he didn’t think that he would leave Emi behind so easily. They seemed so close with their shared love of soccer but it seemed that wasn’t enough.

After that night Emiko became more closed off and chased everyone off with her arrogant and rough attitude. She never really got into serious trouble unless one of the boys on her team got tired of her personality but Sanada was always there to smooth things over with his laid back personality when he could. He found himself skipping practice more often until she decided to go to Seido instead. Somewhere close but still far enough away from him to avoid skipping. Which didn’t really work out since he just ended up skipping anyways for some time to visit the tea shop near school. Until he met a special father and son duo.

Ever since they were younger they had been best friends and somewhere along the way it became an unrequited love. For Sanada that’s how it always was. He was just the supportive best friend, which he didn’t mind. He liked to divulge the fact that no matter what happened he would always know Emi better than anyone else. That whoever gained her attention would have to compete with knowing everything from birth to however long he would get to be in her life. While he wouldn’t get to see the romantic side of her most likely he would get to know every other part since he had been there for every high and low. It wasn’t much but it was all he could realistically look forward to while they both continued on their own paths.

Sanada was the ace of the Yakushi baseball team, and Emi was the ace of the Seido soccer team. It was the first time in their lives where they were going to seperate schools, which wasn’t something he liked at first, but looking at her standing tall with her team at such a prestigious arena for girls soccer he couldn’t be more proud. He no longer saw the mask that she created for herself all those years ago. She had a genuine smile on her face whenever they would meet up, or when she would send a random picture through Line. He felt like she had been brought back to life which was all he ever wanted. It was hard to accept that he couldn’t help her directly but there was no ounce of animosity in him. Instead he was grateful that she came to Seido. They both had found themselves in their own schools that they probably wouldn’t have found anywhere else beside where they ended up. He could do without Miyuki Kazuya gaining her attention but everything else was just right for them.

During his break, Sanada decided to join his parents in supporting Emiko at the national tournament. He had met with them once his own practices had stalled since they were already in Kobe. They had gotten a room close by their hotel for the entire week they would be there. They were practically the only family she had since her own parents were far beyond help. When he had asked about them he discovered that they had also made an appearance during quarter finals and planned on staying until the finals. He wasn’t too happy to hear about this considering her father hadn’t shown his face since they were kids and his mom had been drinking her problems away. The only reason why they even made an appearance was because of their own selfish desires that had nothing to do with Emiko, in fact all they were doing was using her to get what they each wanted. Emiko’s father being the spotlight of having a talented prodigy daughter and her mother trying to lure her ex husband back. They deserved each other.

He didn’t want to think about them though since Seido had made it to the finals after facing off against a dirty team. When he got to watch the quarter finals he could tell that there was something on her mind but woke herself up from whatever that was seeing her teammate hurt. She had started to outshine everyone on the field that it made it hard to look away.

After the game Sanada followed his parents to the front entrance where the team would pass through. They did it after every game they attended and each time his mom would make the pair take a picture together like when they were kids. It was a bit embarrassing but he secretly looked forward to it since he was wanting to change out the picture he had of them in their first year in his baseball bag. “Sanada-chan.” The sickly sweet voice gave chills down Shunpei’s back. The familiar nasally tone could only come from one person and when he turned his head in the direction of their voice along with his parents it was sadly the truth.

Emiko’s mother stood about the same height as her daughter but was much more slender than her. She had honey colored eyes that he could remember when they were kids but had turned a darker shade while she dealt with her addiction. Her normally stringy black hair was now well groomed similar to how it used to be before her husband left. It had been a long time since she had taken care of herself so it was like a blast to the past seeing her dressed up once again. Most likely all due to her ex husband considering her daughter had attempted to get her out of bed so many times with no real luck. It was irritating to see but Shunpei just looked away while his mother politely conversed with her. “Have you seen my husband and Emiko?”

“…no we haven’t seen her but we were heading to the front door to-“

“Emiko! Thank you. I hope to see you both at the finals.” Without a second glance she ran off in the direction of where Emiko was walking. Sanada could assume that she was most likely looking for the father of her child rather than the actual child. In the distance when her mother caught up to her all Emiko did was point in the opposite direction which set her on her way. He was sadly not mistaken. His automatic reaction was to go comfort her even despite how accustomed she was to her mother’s neglect, but he stopped in his tracks seeing Miyuki holding her hand. It looked like he was dragging her off in the direction of the team before he disappeared in the crowd along with her. He didn’t think he would go out of his way to come see Emi play. It was a long trip just to come see an ordinary friend and that made him uneasy. He didn’t want to jump to conclusions but he would be asking her about this later. For now he walked with his parents to greet the ace before she had to head back to the hotel.

The interaction was quick since she was already running behind the rest so he wasn’t able to ask the question on his mind. Miyuki was here along with a group of his classmates. The other boys were all familiar considering they were all from the baseball team. His eyes met with the star catcher so he gave a little wave and smile before walking off. It was a bit annoying to see how close he was to Emi but he pushed that aside for her own good.

Later in the evening the Seido soccer team were gathered together in one of the inn’s common rooms. Everyone was showered and at this point just messing around after their win. They would have to wait and see tomorrow who would be their last opponent to determine who would be the national champion. There was no need for anyone to analyze the team’s just yet since they would be attending the game tomorrow. Getting to see first hand how to deal with both. As a result, the girls were left to enjoy their last tournament together with the current third years. It was loud and rowdy with Kurosawa and Kamada leading the pack into chaos like always. Meanwhile, Emiko was sitting close to the window lost in her own thoughts.

Earlier was exhausting for her despite her experience with dealing with both her parents' antics for so long. They had never really been great parents looking back but it had just gotten worse by the time she was 8. The first time they forgot about her was when she was 7 and had to walk home alone on her own for the first time. Shunpei and his father ended up finding her after she lost her way and went missing until late that afternoon. Her mother started drinking heavily by that time and didn’t even know her daughter was missing in the first place. Her father left their family when she was 9 for another woman that got pregnant. She was a younger blonde American that had traveled all the way to confront her father. In the end her mother was the one that had answered the door and almost beat her to pulp if Emi didn’t stop her by getting in between them. That was also the age that her mother had drunkenly hit her in her fit of rage. The last time she hit her was when she got old enough to defend herself at 12 years old. By that time she had become a pro at dealing with her mother. She had to clean her mess of empty bottles and trash, bathe her when she would throw up on herself after passing out, the nights she would have to spend sleeping on the floor to make sure her mother didn’t choke on her own throw up when sleeping, and simply becoming her carer. Until her father started seeing Emi in some soccer magazines for upcoming youth soccer players. His phone calls would sadly give life back to her mother so she would use his calls as a reward until she stopped drinking enough to start working again. She became a grown up already by the time she was 13. Emi already was aware of position and it made her angry that she couldn’t have a regular childhood. Her outbursts were constant and sometimes she wished someone would hit her hard enough to wake her up from this nightmare. Go back to the time when she was allowed to be a kid again, but it never came. Instead she had Sanada Shunpei.

He had become her oasis. His family home became her own over time until she went to Seido. Even now when she thought about her plans for the remainder of her break she saw herself spending it with Sanada and his parents like a regular family. He was home; and perhaps that was the reason why when those dark flashbacks made their way back into the forefront of her brain she thought about calling Shunpei. She went to Seido to become more independent from him in hopes that she wouldn’t have to depend on him so much one day, but here she was hovering her finger over his caller id. Sighing in frustration she went to put it down but the buzzing in her hand caught her mid stride. Turning it over, the caller ID read “Shun <3” and a breath she didn’t realize she was holding released itself from her chest like a mass had been lifted from it. She secretly walked out of the common room to the empty main hall.

Pressing the green button and lifting it to her ear she called out to him, “Hey Shun. How’s it going?”

“I should be asking you that. I’m fine.” She chuckled knowing that she must have seen her parents at the game earlier. “I’m fine too. You know how it is…”

“Mhm.” The line was silent and while most of the time Emi would find it awkward she knew that this silence was a silent encouragement for her to keep going. He always knew when something was on her mind and it was sometimes scary how he was able to read that without actually seeing her face. “…I’m exhausted. My father came to talk to me after the match and just upset me a bit. I was lucky that Miyuki just so happened to be there and pulled me away.”

“So that’s why he was holding your hand earlier.” That realization made the girl blush looking back. She was a bit embarrassed that Sanada saw the pair in that position. “Yeah that’s all it was.”

“Well I’m glad he was there too. Your dad is a lot to deal with alone.”

“Yeah you could say that again.”

“Do you still need someone to vent to?”

“Well I really don’t want to lose focus but I have a feeling I won’t be able to until I do. Are you able to sit here on the phone with me all night while I go on and on about my crappy parents?” She tried to joke about her situation but Sanada could hear how weak she sounded beyond that tone she tried to use to hide her pain.

“I’m outside.”

“What?”

“I’m outside your hotel. Are you near a window facing out? Look outside.” When she did look out the large panels of the hallway she could make out a small figure waving up towards the hotel. He would look crazy if anyone else saw and it made her laugh to imagine. Tears made their way back into her eyes that she had to wipe them away to get a better view of her sweet friend. “Come out and we can take a walk like we used to.” That was the only invitation she needed before she ran down the hallway and down the stairs to get to him faster. It was only the third floor anyways and in her rush she skipped down the stairs to get to him.

When she finally made it outside she looked around for the familiar figure who was standing just a few feet away. “I could hear you sprinting like a wild woman.” He teases her while holding the phone up to show her the screen still on the call. This was ignored since she silently walked up to him to hug him tight. Her tears were now flowing and it felt like she was the little kid that ran away from her home the night her world fell apart.

It wasn’t like this was anything new. Her mother’s neglect and rejection was nothing new. Her father’s narcissism and sickly sweet words laced in threats was nothing new. Nothing about her world was fixed and probably never would be but Sanada’s arms felt like she was able to keep that world from spilling out into orbit so far gone beyond repair. He kept her going in these broad arms and she found it so hard to let go anytime soon.

[robinofinashiro]

"i didn't realize i was an inconvenience," / "if you liked me, you wouldn't have done it!"

characters/fandom: miyuki kazuya / slight! kuramochi youichi - ace of diamond

pronouns used: female (she/her)

"where's Kazuya at? we're supposed to head to dinner together," you asked, trying to find him over the crowd of people. Haruichi pointed over to the girl that Miyuki had been ignoring for you lately. you felt yourself sigh, not wanting to interrupt his conversation, "ah, tell him I'll just see him later I guess," you murmured before quickly trying to find something to occupy yourself with.

Haruichi saw the dejected look on your face but knew better than to press the situation. you were now picking up the stray balls. you tossed the balls into the basket as you saw Sawamura approaching you.

"hey Eijun, what's up?" you asked, looking up to the taller boy. he gave you that bright smile that made anyones day light up, "Miyuki said he'd wait for you at dinner," you rolled your eyes, not bothering to look back at him, "tell him I'm busy so I'll see him whenever," you replied, giving Sawamura a smile to reassure him that you weren't mad at him per say.

"but you're not busy?" he asked, oblivious to the fact that you were mad at the catcher. you sighed, "not today Eijun, I'm just going back to my dorm," you said, throwing the last balls into the basket before grabbing your bag and heading in the opposite direction. Sawamura remained confused but shrugged it off before leaving.

you walked back to your dorm, trying not to make it seem as though you were upset as you saw Haruno at her desk, getting some homework done. you gave her a smile as she waved, "how was practice?" she asked, immediately sensing that you were upset. you rolled your eyes, not particularly at her, but at the thought of practice.

"I just don't understand what I'm doing wrong. we've been friends for years, quite literally since infancy, and he's been ignoring me for some random girl," you growled, your back hitting the bed. she gave you tight lipped smile, "I thought I made it pretty obvious that I liked him but I guess not," you continued.

before Haruno could speak up, you heard a knock on the door. you knew it was Miyuki but you were in no mood to speak to him. she walked over to the door, "hey Miyuki, what can I help you with?" she asked, "is ( your name ) here? she skipped out on dinner," he asked.

Haruno sighed, looking back at you as you gave her a desperate look, "she's asleep. she wasn't feeling well," she lied as he hummed. you heard Miyuki leave as Haruno gave you a look, "you can't ignore hm forever. you either have to move on or tell him your feelings," she lectured.

you wanted to fight her on the idea, "or I can start getting closer to someone on the team as payback," Haruno's eyes widened, "that's not what I meant," Haruno replied in a panic. you gave her a smirk as you looked over to the team photo, "and I got the perfect person to do it with," you added on, your eyes widening at the sight of the one and only Kuramochi Youichi.

"why him?" she asked, trying to talk you down from the idea, "that's his best friend," she added on. you remained silent for a moment but the smirk on your face stayed.

"I mean, all I'm saying is that Manager Day is coming up and I can expect that Kazuya is going to give that girl his jersey so what's so wrong with Mochi giving me his?"

she growled, fully knowing that she was not going to get through to you.

+

you giggled as you walked inside of the building. Kuramochi was telling you some stupid joke as you felt a shiver coming down your spine from the cold of the building. you eventually met up with the rest of the third years, including Kazuya and the girl whose name you learned was Ami.

"cold today, isn't it?" you asked all of your friends. you saw Kazuya perk up at the sound of your voice, "where were you yesterday? you skipped out on dinner," he asked. you shrugged, "got tired and decided to go sleep. you were busy with Ami so I figured my presence wouldn't be missed too much," you added that slight stab.

you saw Kuramochi start to laugh as Haruno internally growled. Kazuya on the other hand stared at you with a bewildered expression, "Youi, I'm cold and forgot my jacket. could I borrow yours? I know you have a spare in your locker," you asked, tugging at the navy blue blazer.

Haruno's eyes widened as Mochi nodded. he put the blazer over your shoulders as you thanked him, "so, who on the team is asking which manager out for Manager Day? I need to give the list Kataoka before the end of the day," you asked the boys. Miyuki looked to Ami as she smiled. Ami was a manager for the boys soccer team which meant that any of the boys on the baseball team could have asked her out.

"has anyone asked you?" Kazuya asked you. you shook your head no, "nope but if no one does, I'll have to force someone on the team," you threatened. Kuramochi looked to you, "seriously? no one has asked you?" he said in a bit of shock.

you shook your head no again, "I mean, he was my partner the last two years but I heard he asked Ami so if you know anyone, let me know," you said as you pulled on Mochi's blazer to make you warmer. Haruno's mouth dropped at the second comment you made about Ami and Miyuki.

all of you heard the bell go off as you made your way to your class. both you, Kazuya, and Mochi had the same homeroom class as Ami was in class 3-A, "I can't Manager Day is tomorrow. it's about time all of you celebrate the hardwork we do," you told them. they rolled their eyes playfully, "I think you have the teams respect," Kuramochi replied.

"yeah so why hasn't anyone asked me out?" you asked with a deadpanned expression. the two boys remained silent as you walked into the class, as if they were having a silent conversation with each other, "well, if our teacher marks you late, that's on you," you told them as you heard the final bell ring off.

throughout the class, you felt both Kuramochi's and Kazuya's eyes on you. you wondered if it had to do with anything of what you had said earlier. Manager Day was the day after tomorrow so figured if any of the boys on the team were going to ask you out, it was going to have to be tonight or tomorrow in the morning.

you couldn't help but compare both of the boys and their smell. Kazuya had a campy smell. something along the lines of burning firewood as Mochi had more of a forest and morning dew in the spring smell. two different scents but your heart yearned more that burning firewood.

the day dragged on as you had made your way to the field, seeing the boys already practicing. you waved hello to everyone as you saw Kuramochi basically darting over towards you. a spare jersey in hand as you saw Kazuya's fuming expression. you couldn't help but wonder what you had missed in the few minutes that you were late.

"can I talk to you? alone for a moment?" Mochi asked as he grabbed your wrist and walked over to a more secluded part of the field. you stood in front of the green haired boy, confusion written across your face, "since you don't have anyone for tomorrow, I was wondering if you'd like for me to be your partner? I have a spare jersey you could wear for it," he confessed.

"hey, what's going on?" you heard Kazuya's angry and curious filled voice. you gave him a stare, one that indicated a moments hatred, "I was going to accept Youi's confession to be my partner for Manager Day before you interrupted," you said, pressing him to get out. he saw the way you were trying to get him to leave, "I didn't realize I was an inconvenience," he murmured before leaving.

a part of you smiled as you felt that moments pride take over your body, "but thank you Youchi, I appreciate it," you said grabbing the jersey and holding it close to you, "see you tomorrow. ten am sharp for the morning entrance," you added on as you went inside of the dugout to get a few manager materials you needed.

the rest of the practice went without trouble except for Kazuya's shitty attitude towards everyone. you could tell that Mochi's confession did not hit Kazuya the right way. he was blatantly cursing everyone out at the smallest mistake that even Kataoka had to step in a few times to tell him that it wasn't that deep.

by the end of the practice, you had seen Kazuya walking back to his dorm, anger evident on his face, "he's pissed and it's because of you and Kuramochi," Haruno said as you shrugged, "and? he has Ami, he'll be okay," you responded as you chucked your backpack on and held Kuramochi's jersey with your hand.

"those two were going back and fourth all practice, do you really think it was a good idea?" she asked. you shrugged again, "not my problem. if he has an issue with it, he can man up and tell me himself," you stated as you walked past Kuramochi and Kazuya, giving Mochi a wave before giving a quick glance to Kazuya.

+

the following morning you got up bright and early. the day was going to start off with the boys baseball game as that was the first round of Manager Day. you pulled on Kuramochi's jersey on with a black tank top underneath and matched it with ripped jeans. Kuramochi's jersey hit you a lot bigger in comparison to Kazuya's.

you made your way to the field as you went up to Kuramochi, "wait, I think we were supposed to hand you the jersey instead of giving it to you," Mochi said as you rolled your eyes jokingly. you gave him the jersey as Rei informed all of you that the managers were supposed to be on the field before the boys got there.

"see ya on the field Mochi!" you exclaimed as you walked past Ami and Kazuya. all of you walked onto the field, earning roars by the fans as the intercom went off, informing the crowd on todays events.

"we'd like to present our managers with our players jerseys as a token of our gratitude," the voice said as you saw the boys walk onto the field, "( your name ) is the captain of the Seidou's boys baseball team and has accepted Kuramoci Youichi's jersey todays events. he wears number six and is currently the short stop on the team," they informed the crowd.

you saw Kuramochi walk up to you, bowing in gratitude as a song played off and you pulled on the jersey. you smiled to the camera's as you made sure to show off Mochi's number as he gave the camera a awkward and wobbly smile. you couldn't help but realize that Miyuki nor Ami were on the field, which was odd considering this was Ami's planned time.

the two of you walked hand in hand to the dugout. you quickly let his hand go, feeling odd that it wasn't Kazuya's. you sat on the bench, immediately focusing on the game plans as the rest of the team prepared themselves to play Ichidaisan.

throughout the entire day, you had yet to see Ami anywhere. you couldn't help but wonder where she went. you saw Kazuya on the field and even in attendance at the Manager Day dinner but he was not with Ami. you quickly realized that after the game was over, Kuramochi had reverted to his 'bro' personality with you. nothing like how the two of you were a few days ago.

as all of you ate dinner, the song 'Fun' by Coldplay and Tove Lo played through the speaker. you were sitting next to Kuramochi and Sawamura, the two of them cracking jokes with the entire team as you munched on your soup. Kazuya had hardly spoken a word to you as you looked up to see what his issue was.

"Just you and me, we were always meant to....always meant to be."

you locked eyes with Kazuya as you couldn't help but realize how ironic the situation. you got up from the table, Kazuya following a few steps behind you. the two of you landed in front of the school building, the cold air blowing as you looked to Kazuya for an explanation.

"how could you?" he asked, making you laugh out of sarcasm, "how could I? how could you? you kept flaunting your girlfriend around and kept ditching me for her so I don't see the issue!" you quickly replied.

he sighed, running his hands through his hair, "I was not flaunting her nor was she my girlfriend. she was just a friend that happened to be a girl," he explained. you rolled your eyes, not wanting to hear him anymore ,"quit the bullshit Miyuki. we've been friends for how long and you're lying to me?" you asked in disbelief.

Kazuya stayed quiet for a moment before whispering a fuck it, "I started hanging out with Ami because I realized that I started getting feelings for you and felt like if I hung out with her, I'd lose feelings for you so I didn't ruin our friendship," you laughed but this time out of disbelief.

"seriously? if you liked me as much as you say you do, why couldn't you just tell me? if you liked me, you wouldn't have done that and put me through weeks of agony!" you screamed, punching the brick wall like a complete idiot.

Kazuya stared at you, now scared that you had broken your hand. you stared at your bleeding knuckles as Kazuya grabbed your hand softly, "you idiot, why did you do that?" he whisper-screamed, "come on, lets go patch this up before it gets worse. you'll probably need a bandage for the next few days," he explained as the two of you walked inside of the school building and into the bathroom after he grabbed a first aid kit.

the entire time he wrapped your hand was filled with silence, "Kazuya, why didn't you just tell me you liked me? it would have saved us a lot of time and trouble," you finally said as you looked up to him, "what do you mean?" he asked as he taped the bandage shut.

you rolled your eyes, now fully annoyed that Kazuya didn't understand what you were saying. you pulled him closer and brought him in for a kiss, giving Kazuya a pleasant surprise. the two of you stayed that way for a while as Kazuya slipped his tongue in after a while.

"does that answer your question?" Kazuya nodded instantly as he chuckled, "so you do like me, huh? guess scaring Youichi off of you actually worked," he murmured. you gave Kazuya a look, "what do you mean?" you asked. he giggled, now nervous, "I might've threatened Youchi to leave you alone after the Manager Day game," your eyes widened at what he was telling you, "when I realized that you might've started to fall for him, I told Ami that I couldn't actually date her because it felt like I was just trying to find someone to replace you and after I did that, I kind of threatened Youichi to leave you alone before anything bad happened...."

you sighed, not believing what you were hearing.

"you really are an idiot Kazuya," you murmured against his lips as you brought him in for another kiss. he shrugged, not bothering to care as he knew Mochi wouldn't be mad at him for too long, "I was fuming seeing you in his jersey," he confessed in between kisses.

"serves you right you ass. next time, confess to me in a proper manner."

[sangorous]

word count: 1.1k

genre/warnings: fluff/none

miyuki kazuya x black!fem!reader

the heat from the sun burned his skin as he sat there in the crowd watching the game. he wasn't sure why he was here at a softball game, but he was here anyways. it wasn't like he was doing anything back at the dorm anyways.

"out!" miyuki looked at the female catcher as she took her helmet off.

"wow she can throw!" he listened to everyone around him talk about the female as she fixed her braids in her headband.

he never knew that the softball team at inashiro industrial had such a monster catcher. she looked like she wasn't from here and maybe she was from the states, so maybe that's why she's good.

"alright guys! let's get one more out!" she shouted with a smile as she placed her helmet back on her head.

miyuki watched as the person on third base was trying to go for a steal, and as soon as the pitcher threw the ball, it was a strike. the pitcher threw the ball again, and it was a strike. and everyone waited for the pitcher to throw the ball, and once she did, everyone heard the whistle blow.

"strike! batter out!" and inashiro industrial took home the victory.

"wow," was all miyuki can say as he looked at the catcher. he watched as her teammates jumped on her while she was smiling,

he got up from the bleachers and walked down to where the teams would meet, hoping that she would be there. he heard the sound of laughter and when he turned his head to the side to see her, the catcher.

"good game," he looked at her while she looked at him.

"thank you," she smiled at him, looking him up and down.

"i'm miyuki," he held his hand out, hoping that she'd shake it. and to his surprise, she shook it back.

"[your name]," she smiled, looking at him. she couldn't lie, he was cute. he was super cute.

"you're an amazing catcher, i was completely speechless when you threw the ball to third base," he spoke with his smile on his face.

"thanks," she scratched the back of her head as she chuckled.

"[your name] we're about to go!" her teammates shouted while she nervously chuckled.

"maybe i can give you my number and we can talk later?" he raised an eyebrow while handing her his phone. she quickly nodded her head as she grabbed his phone and typed her number in.

"talk to you later?" she nodded her head with a smile before she ran off to her teammates.

"girl!" they shouted towards her, pulling her on both arms.

"that's the catcher from seidou, miyuki!" mai shouted, tugging on her arm.

"and he's definitely interested in you!" aiyo added, wiggling her eyebrows.

"guys quit it, he just complimented my skills as a catcher," she mumbled, looking at her phone.

"then why would he need your number hm..." mai trailed off with a smirk as they walked inside the bus.

"whatever," she muttered to herself.

miyuki made it back to the dorms where kuramochi looked at him. he wondered why miyuki was in a good mood, "why are you smiling so hard?" kuramochi raised an eyebrow at him.

"i went to the inashiro softball game, and met the catcher there. she is an amazing catcher, better than most of the baseball catchers we play," he slightly smiled.

but that smile was quickly gone when he felt the arms of kuramochi around his neck, "you went to the game without me?" he shouted, making sure that his grip on his neck was tight.

"s-s-sorry," miyuki choked as kuramochi removed his arms from his neck.

"did you get her number?"

"of course i did, i'm going to text her and ask her to come over and watch our practice," he felt kuramochi pat him on the back with a small smile.

"i can't wait to see how she looks tomorrow," he chuckled before walking to his room.

↳ ❝ [𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐀𝐓 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓] ¡! ❞

the next day, [your name] got a text from miyuki asking her if she was free. after that text, he invited her over to watch their practice and offered to go somewhere to eat afterwards. she couldn't lie, she was a bit nervous. but once mai and aiyo reassured her that everything would be fine and that she was being over dramatic.

[your name] arrived to seidou and she was nervous as hell. she was happy that she wore shorts due to the hot weather in the summer. she walked over to where the crowd of people were watching by the fence and figured that they were over there practicing.

as she made her way there, she recognized the voice that was shouting and once he took his helmet off, there he was. he gave her a wink before he placed his helmet back on his head and crouched back down to continue his practice. she couldn't lie, he was amazing. she has never seen a catcher as amazing as him before, and she was intrigued.

after practice was over, miyuki walked over to where [your name] stood. he could feel the smile slowly forming on his face as he stood in front of her while she returned the smile.

"you.are.amazin'," she gasped, looking at him.

"and for you to compliment my skills as a catcher really made me happy," she added while he chuckled.

"it's no biggie really, that's just my role as a catcher," he shrugged his shoulder while smiling.

"oh wow," she jokingly chuckled, looking at the cocky miyuki.

"are you ready to go eat? i know this place that's not far from here that we could walk to," he looked at her and she nodded her head.

the walk to the restaurant consisted of them talking their love over baseball/softball and how they hope to make it big one day. when they got to the restaurant, their talk about the sport continued as he made a few jokes. [your name] couldn't lie, she was extremely happy. she has never talked to someone other than her teammates and classmates like this before.

"when is your next game so that i can come?" he looked at her.

"i believe next week," she looked up at the ceiling and thought for a while.

"great i'll be there," he smiled as she felt the jitters in her stomach.

after they were done eating, miyuki decided walk her to the bus stop before he headed back towards the dorm. he was really hoping to see her again, which he did the next day. and the day after, and the day after that, and at her games. they spent a lot of time with each other, and little did they know that something would end up happening.

there was no denying that these two had feelings towards each other after just meeting. was it the mere fact that they both enjoyed the same sport and played the same position? or was it simply love at first sight?

[alitaimagines]

[ request by anonymous: hello! could i request an imagine (or hcs? whichever you'd rather work with) with the kominabros from daiya and an S/O that plays baseball too but can't be on the team because she's a girl? ]

☆ previous imagine: ♡ ☆ masterlists: ♡ ♡ ☆ requests: open.

kominato ryousuke: 

okay, so our tsundere is a little weirded out by the fact that you play baseball, and play it so well. it’s not that he’s jealous of your ability bc he could care less but he wondered why you attended Seidou knowing you couldn’t play. 

the two of you probably met while you were practicing on the field while it wasn’t being used. you were batting while a friend of yours pitched. your skills as a batter were insane and he wanted to know where learned.

after he confronts you, he finds out that you learned to play in a girls little league team. soon after, you played on a co-ed team and even though you couldn’t play baseball at Seidou, he figured that the school must’ve been your district school so you had no other choice but to come here. 

for the sake of everything, lets say you still play on a co-ed team! he’d watch your games as long as they didn’t collide with him. that’s also the place where most of his jealousy bubbles up from and honestly, you can tell when he’s upset or bothered.

you’re very close with some of your male teammates so it’s a given that when you win, some of them will come up to hug you. to make it an even bigger deal, you have an ex on the team and when he finds that out, he’s MAD pissed. he’ll watch and make sure that your ex isn’t getting too close to you. 

he’ll kiss you and stare at your ex with those eyes that terrify his entire team. he above doing the dirty in your teams dugout just to prove a point but if you aren’t the type of person to do that, he’ll just give you a long hard kiss to prove it. 

Ryou lives for the days that the two of you can practice together. it’ll be just as the sun is going down, the air isn’t too hot, and the two of you are just playing for fun. those days usually end up being some of his favorite memories and he’ll cherish them forever. 

one day, he hopes he can see the two of you doing that with your children as well. 

kominato haruichi:

our lil birb will be almost like his brother but he’ll have you around the team even more. he hopes that you and Kuramochi can get along. being that the two of you are very prevalent in his life, Kuramochi knows not to tease you as much bc of how much you mean to Haru. 

sometimes Kataoka will allow you to play with the team, even if it��s just a practice. he sees the way you play with Haruichi and will see that when you do play, you take it seriously, and it’ll give the boys a run for their money. 

if you’re interested in starting an recreational softball team, Rei and Kataoka will help you with it. Haruichi would bring it up to them and they can see how serious he is about helping you. Kataoka brushes it off meanwhile Rei will find it so adorable. 

Haruichi is DEF the kind of boyfriend who will let you wear his jersey. he’ll let you wear it when you’re out there playing with the girls. seeing HIS number slapped on the back of HIS girlfriends back, it’ll give him serotonin for fucking days. he’s a lil possessive when it comes to you. 

Sawamura will beg for you to let him play with you and Haruichi. in a way, Sawamura will become a close friend of yours bc of his relationship with Haruichi and honestly, Furuya probably gets dragged into it as well. the seconds years are bunch of idiots and they share on brain cell and the one who has it 99.99% of the time is Haruichi. 

if he sees that you’re upset because you can’t play with the team, he’ll try every bit of him to see what the possibility would be for you to even be considered to try out. he knows it’s almost near to impossible but he’s hoping that they consider it, even the tiniest bit.

Ryou will see his little brothers relationship and for the first few times he meets you, he’ll tease the two of you but you know behind the facade, Ryou means well. you know the relationship the two of them have together so you best get used to Ryou’s attitude bc it ain’t changing just bc of you. 

in the end, baseball is what bring you and Haruichi together. obv’s there’s other things that do but a lot of it boils down for both of your love for baseball and just like his brother, one of his favorite memories is playing with you. hell, I see him as the kind of person to do a public proposal at a Nippon game but those headcanons are for another day/ask.

ALITA

[dorksnoace]

Hello! can I request some relationship hcs for Chris Yuu and Isashiki Jun? Thanks!!

Thank you for requesting, and here are some relationship hcs! I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone! I’ve only just started my blog and I’ve gotten so much love already! So I just wanted to say thank you so much for giving me such a warm welcome!💗

~

Jun Isashiki

He might seem rough on the outside, but he's actually a teddy bear when it comes to being in a relationship.

Jun is very protective of you; he doesn't want anyone messing with you.

If anyone dares to flirt with you or makes you uncomfortable in any way. He may possibly punch this person in the face.

When you guys are cuddling together, he loves when you run your fingers through his hair. He secretly likes to be treated like a baby, but definitely won't let anyone know this except for you.

Isashiki loves coming up behind you and giving you surprise hugs. When you are just standing around doing something, he will sneak up behind you and snuggle you.

Isashiki really likes to show off that you are dating him. He will do this by holding your hand or having his arm draped around your waist.

Though I feel like he might be a little too embarrassed or even nervous to kiss in public, I feel like he would definitely wait to kiss you when you guys are private. However, if you were to kiss him in front of people, he would definitely get flustered but try to play it off as smoothly as possible.

This boy loves when you attend his games and likes to hear you cheering for him. He already has a significant impact on his team's mood, so when you there he's yelling even more than usual when you are there. So it definitely makes his teammates pretty excited.

When he gets a good hit or a home run. Jun will definitely point at you out of excitement.

100% will read Shojo manga with you, or force you to read it with him.

Isashiki would definitely like giving you piggyback rides, or just carrying you in his arms. He loves when you run at him and say, "catch me," it's one of those things that he would do with you a lot.

I feel Isashiki is a bit inexperienced when it comes to relationships, so he might get irritated very quickly (maybe because he's a hothead?). He may not exactly know how to act when he first gets into the relationship, but he is sure to get better as time passes.

Chris Yuu Takigawa

Will always be super encouraging and comforting when things get complicated.

Since he's like this, he doesn't like to raise his voice or let himself get out of line when he's upset. Chris has good self-control when he's angry or even upset with you.

He loves cuddling and then falling asleep together. His favorite mornings are when he wakes up to you beside him.

He loves resting his head on your chest or in your lap while you guys are relaxing. Once you start running your fingers through his hair in this position, he will definitely pass out.

If you are willing to help him stretch his shoulder or give him a massage, he loves it.

The boy is protective but is almost silent about it. If a guy approaches you and starts flirting with you. He won't say anything to them. Instead, he will just glare at them from a distance. Chris will hold this menacing glare until they walk away.

However, if they can't take a hint to back off, he will walk up to you and ask you to go with him. Chris doesn't like it when you find out the real reason why he asked you to come with, but sometimes it is unavoidable.

So if you do find out why he came over, teasing him about it a little is the way to go. Chris will definitely be a bit embarrassed or even flustered, though once you assure him that you are only for him. He will hug you and bury his head into the crook of your neck and mumble, "Thank you so much."

[okitodorokidoki]

a31+55 | miyusawa

ao3 | 837 words | cxc

31- “You haven’t lost me.” 55- ”I’m not going anywhere.” [part one]

The ride to the hospital was stifling and tense. Sawamura hadn’t spoken much until they arrived, and even then it was only when absolutely needed. Miyuki stayed by his side as much as he was allowed to, until the police showed with Kataoka to ask him about what had happened. Miyuki’s ears were full of white noise as Sawamura stumbled through the events that had brought them up to this point, and he wished he could just rewind the day and hold Sawamura’s hand all the way to the bathroom like a child. His fingernails dug into the soft bits left on his palms until he felt a warmth across his shoulders and at his side. Looking up, he saw Sawamura pressed against him, his arm pulling him in close.

“I’m not going anywhere,” He told the pitcher, leaning forward to get a closer look at his tense expression. “You don’t wave to pin me down.”

Sawamura shook his head, pulling tight enough that Miyuki nearly flinched.

“Oy, Sawamura...” He turned, sliding his own arm around Sawamura and pulling him in. “What happened today is never going to happen again, do you understand me?”

Sawamura shuddered, leaning into Miyuki. It always hurt to hear silence when he was around the normally boisterous pitcher, and Miyuki couldn’t help but wonder just how shaken up he was beneath it all.

“I’m okay,” he finally said, startling the catcher.

“Hah?”

Sawamura looked up, the look on his face not one he was expecting. He looked much calmer than Miyuki had assumed he’d be. Sawamura’s free hand came up and Miyuki jumped as there were suddenly fingers treading through his hair.

“You look like a mess,” Sawamura mumbled. “Were you that worried?”

Miyuki looked down at him, gaping in shock. “Was I worried?”

Sawamura met his eye, and didn’t backtrack. “Miyuki Kazuya.”

Miyuki held his gaze for as long as he could before letting out a haggard sigh and leaning forward, clenching his eyes shut as his forehead hit Sawamura’s shoulder.

“You haven’t lost me, Miyuki-senpai,” Sawamura said. “So please don’t look so upset.”

“I’m going to be very upset for a while, Sawamura,” Miyuki said. “And nothing you can say will stop that.”

“Then… want to catch for me?”

Miyuki tilted his head slightly to send him an ‘are you serious?’ glare. Of course he was.

“You seemed pretty worried about my arm, and there’s no better way to make sure I’m in top shape!”

Miyuki flinched at the sudden volume, but it was also a relief to have an eardrum burst once more.

“I think maybe asking the doctor might just be a good way, too.”

Sawamura’s expression faltered as he scrambled for recovery. “What would they know! They’re doctors!”

Miyuki snickered, holding Sawamura tight for just a moment longer before pulling away from him. “Oy, you might not want them to hear you saying that...”

“Then, let’s go! Catch for me, Miyuki Kazuya!” Sawamura grabbed Miyuki’s jacket, hauling him up from the chair.

“Were you cleared by the doctor, Sawamura?” A startling voice asked from behind him.

Sawamura nearly left the ground as he spun around. “Coach!”

Kataoka motioned towards the door. “Let’s go back to campus. It’s getting late.”

Miyuki slid in beside Sawamura, an arm around his shoulders guiding him to follow the coach. “Looks like you’re going to have babysitters for a while, Sawamura.”

Sawamura blanched for a moment, stumbling on his feet.

“We can’t even trust you can go to the bathroom on your own, how can we ever let you be by yourself again?” He was only partially teasing, feeling like he really wouldn’t be able to leave him alone; especially if the police hadn’t dealt with his assailants just yet.

“We’ll hold a meeting tomorrow before breakfast to set up a schedule.” Kataoka decided.

“C-Coach! Wait, not you, too!”

Miyuki’s arm slipped from Sawamura’s shoulders as they reached the door, Rei waiting outside by a cab.

“We can get ‘if lost please return to Seidou’s baseball team’ shirts and everything,” Miyuki cackled, opening the backseat for Sawamura.

“Miyuki Kazuya! When did you start being such a bastard again! I knew your being nice was too good to be true!”

Miyuki snickered, ruffling Sawamura’s hair as he got in the car to make sure he didn’t hit his head on the roof. “Didn’t you know, Sawamura? I’m mean, very mean. I’ve never been nice.”

He slid in after Sawamura, making sure the boy had his seat-belt on right as he wailed about how mean he was.

“You can repay my earlier kindness by getting me a drink when we get back.”

“Miyuki, please stop agitating him until we get out of the car at least.” Rei pleaded.

Miyuki snickered, leaning back in his seat and watching the pouting boy next to him. A loud Sawamura was much more honest about his feelings, so a loud Sawamura he would make until he heard every thought he had swimming around in that head of his.

[toobusywritingimagines]

Sorry this took so long 😅 I’m almost caught up on request now though! I tried a different style for this one, I kind of like it, but let me know what y’all think! I also kind of want to write some drabbles based off this, so let me know if your interested!

Request are still open 😊

-okay, so you have always loved baseball, your family would go to games constantly and your brothers played.

-you played with them whenever you could, in the park, in the field near your house, in the house (yes, your mother yelled a lot about that)

-boys were always impressed about how un-afraid you were of the game as most of the girls would only sit and watch but would be too scared of getting hit or something

-but not you, you liked being out and running to try to catch the ball, or waiting for the perfect pitch to show off how well you could hit

-plus you weren’t afraid to argue over a bad call if needed

-you didn’t let being a girl hold you back in anyway

-so when you got into Seidou you immediately wanted to go try to work with the team

-they were in need of a new manager to help with the craziness of the team, and since you knew a lot about the sport and were volunteering, you were perfect

-every day you itched to play with them but, some of those boys could be intimidating at first so you kept to yourself for the most part.

-it wasn’t really until Sugawara, Furuya, and Haruchi we’re practicing one night that you shyly asked if they needed someone else to help

-they were surpassed but let you join them, they were just going to play some catch so a fourth would be good

-they honestly didn’t think that you were going to be as good as you were though, at the end of the night when you were cleaning up they asked you about it and were excited to learn you played with your brothers

-naturally that meant you started helping them whenever you could

-slowly the rest of the team took notice and would start (shyly because these boys may be intimidating but they are all awkward) to ask you to help them too

-they started to become like the older brothers that you left behind, they were very protective over you, not just on the field but in the hallway too

-like, one day a boy was pestering you and wouldn’t leave you alone and Kuramochi almost lost it

-and, lets be honest, you didn’t mind it at all, it’s nice to know you have people watching over you

-pretty much every night you were staying late, you didn’t mind because you got to play, but the coaches and older managers would think the team was holding you hostage and yell at the boys about it

-when you shyly came up and told them that you liked playing with them and asked to play first they would sigh and just tell them not to over work you

-you were precious to the team so naturally you had most of them wrapped around your finger, but that didn’t mean you couldn’t hold your own, especially when they started to be annoying

-you made them a treat one day just because and they almost cried

-like, just imagine all these boys who are most likely taller than you surrounding you in a hug, crying because of a small gesture like that

-I 100% believe they would do that

-one day you were really stressed with school and a project that your group mates weren’t helping with so you asked the older managers for one day off

-you had a mock on your dorm door that night with worried team members making sure you were okay, like Yūki was in full mom mode

-they let you rant to them and felt better after. It was Miyuki this time who was ready to fight your group members for not helping but Haruchi got you to agree to talk to the teacher

-basically, you are the little sister of the team, they enjoyed playing with you and loved hanging out with you, and would be ready to fight someone for you at any time (including if you ever dated someone, on or off the team)

[allanimeimagines]

[doki-doki-daiya]

Jealous Miyuki headcannons? Thank you, I love your blog, btw :)

awwww thank you! I totally gotchu for headcanons too I love jealous Miyuki ~Admin Tress

Contrary to popular belief, he doesn’t get seriously jealous that easily. At first he’ll joke about the situation, because that’s his first line of defense for everything, and be all “Maa, [Name], don’t tell me you’re sick of me already. And here I was planning on treating you to ice cream, guess I’ll eat all of it myself now~”

But if he seriously gets jealous it’s game fucking on.

He glares at the op without realizing it until Kuramochi jabs him in the side mouthing “Why are you looking at them like they stole your favorite toy?” because if looks could kill they’d already be six feet under.

He kind of obsesses about it because he’s one of those people who, if they have a problem, can’t push it out of their mind. He’ll replay every interaction in his head trying to figure out what makes them so liked, and low-key ask around trying to find out everything about them.

Also very low-key trying to one-up them at everything.

Other than that he’s pretty subtle about it. He’s not going to abuse his captainship by making them run extra laps or something just because he doesn’t like them. He’s not that petty usually. He’s also not really the type to talk about his feelings (jfc Miyuki communication please) so he’ll try to deal with it on his own but it just ends up getting bottled up and we all know that’s not going to end well.

Miyuki doesn’t just get jealous of people tho like he will loathe inanimate objects bc honestly they’re worse than people. People he can glare at until they go away. A videogame will just sit there, immune.

His jealousy stems from his insecurities, because he knows he has a shitty personality, he knows he can be hard to get along with, but when he finds people who are willing to look past that he gets so attached. He doesn’t like showing it, won’t even admit it to himself most of the time because it shouldn’t matter. He’s spent years being on a team without being on a team. He likes being alone. But. Being on the outside looking in. Feeling excluded. That makes him painfully aware of all the ways he’s lacking. He doesn’t have Eijun’s magnetic charisma or Tetsu’s natural leadership. Sometimes he thinks the only way for someone like him to have a place is to be the best, to make himself indispensable. He tries to shoulder the weight of the team but if it doesn’t work, when it doesn’t work, it feels like he’s failed, and everyone is replacing him like they should be doing. It doesn’t make it hurt any less. It doesn’t stop his wishing to be someone he knows he can never be. But he doesn’t stop trying.    

[oydan]

Title: Self Awareness

Pairing: Miyuki Kazuya x OC

Warning: Family issues. Fluff.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters let alone the entirety of Ace of the Diamond. I only own the OC characters mentioned.

A/N: Support by liking, commenting, reblogging my work. I do requests as well if anyone out there wants anything specific. Hit that follow button so we can interact.

Masterlist

“Keep up Sawamura!” Kuramochi yells over his shoulder at the awestruck boy following behind. The group of baseball boys that gathered together to take the trip to Kobe consisted of the original trio of Miyuki, Kuramochi, and Sawamura. After practically begging the two older boys they decided to let the pitcher tag along.

They make their way to their seats and almost automatically Miyuki could spot the raven haired girl. She was dribbling the ball towards the goal and the way she moved was graceful. It didn’t even seem like she had anyone guarding her with how fast and easily she got past the defense. When the goalie came out the two defenders caged her in to cut off her way to score. Miyuki wasn’t a soccer fan and it was pretty obvious thinking back to when he last played soccer with the rest of the second years. He could throw a baseball from home to second with little problem but using his feet to dribble a soccer ball was impossible. He was an athletic guy but tripping over the ball or even his feet was a challenge in itself. Yet, when Emi somehow lifted the ball high enough off the ground and kicked it with ease between the miniature gap to the back of the goal. He was left mystified. That finesse and precision was almost impossible for just anyone to do. Even someone who played the sport just as long could make that decision in such a short amount of time while going full speed. He didn’t need to play soccer to know that.

“Wow! That was incredible Onishi-senpai!” Sawamura yells out hoping to get her attention, but instead Kuramochi hits the back of his head for yelling so close to his ear.

Miyuki chuckled at the pair but he agreed. Emi was incredible. He was surprised that she couldn’t hear the boy considering his voice could carry out to a whole stadium. When he found her once again she was jogging her way back in line but there was something different about her. He wasn’t able to figure out what it was but he planned to catch up to her after the match.

The crowd was similar to baseball in regards to spectators speaking amongst one another about the players. While baseball has been Japan’s pride for some time, soccer has been growing in popularity, but despite their success Japan’s female soccer was still in the process of gaining supporters in comparison to the male league. With Emi’s presence it seemed to be a quicker process. “Look, that's her. That’s Emiko Onishi, number 10. She took a practically unknown soccer program and built it from the ground up.”

“Seido? Isn’t that just a baseball school? Why would she even think to go there?”

“Who knows, probably to stand out more. She’s been plastered on all those sports magazines since she was a first year.” The pair go on to talk more in detail about the soccer tournament so far that Miyuki lost interest pretty easily. His ears perked up when he heard another group talking loudly over the crowd chattering about Emi. “Did you see the last match? Seido practically destroyed that team from Shizuoka.”

“Oh yeah it was 7-0 wasn’t it? That was tough to watch but it goes to show how spectacular Onishi is huh?”

“She is but she only scored a hat trick. The rest of the time she fell back to being a playmaker only. Those two strikers in the front do their job. Too bad they’re already in their third year. I wonder if they have any potential players for next season.”

“Well they’ll have a seasoned team that’s for sure. They have Kurosawa and Kamada to work their defense around so they might just become more defensive next year to make up for the loss in the front.”

“Yeah but they may just leave Onishi up front the whole time.”

“I think they’ll use her as the only striker.”

“No way she has to be a playmaker. Without her in the middle we definitely won’t be able to move the ball around as freely. She and Kurosawa work way too well together. Kamada in center back makes it almost impossible for anyone to break through.”

“True and I think Onishi is going to finally give in to the national team’s invitation this summer.” That caught Miyuki’s attention considering he hasn’t heard anything about that yet. He knew she had been on the fence about it for a while but he wondered if the rumor was true. “She’s been sticking it out with this team this whole time. I don’t see her abandoning them in a rebuilding year.”

“That’s the thing I heard she only did for the third years. She wanted to win the championship this year and move on.”

“You’re such a rumor mill.”

“Just watch. You’ll see. There’s an invitational coming up after their graduation. I’m sure she’ll go to that.”

When their conversation moved on Miyuki sat back to think about their conversation beforehand. He knew that she wanted to explore her options but there was something else beside her team stopping her. From the way she was acting now there could be more than what she led him to believe.

Soon the warm up time was concluded and while the girls from both sides were walking back to the locker room Miyuki could see Emiko cast a glance to the opposing side. He never spared their side a glance till now and it was obvious from the glares and dark looks they were aiming towards the girl. He was guessing she saw the same looks he did and rather than glaring back like most people would, she smirked. It reminded him of his own competitive nature; and he was glad that while she wasn’t exactly acting like she normally did before, she was at the very least focused enough to thrive off the excitement of being targeted. To him that showed him that she was okay.

“This team is known to be really aggressive. They got here based on the last team running out of subs. All their strikers were injured.” The group of boys could once again overhear a group of spectators behind them. It was enough for Kuramochi and Miyuki to assume that it had to do with the team playing dirty. If their glares being fixated on Emiko was any indication their first target was her. Miyuki could feel a slight bit of anxiety at the thought of what they were capable of doing. Baseball was far from a contact sport yet he injured his abdominal from a desperate opponent. Soccer was notorious for the physical turmoil so if these girls were willing to go as far as injuring multiple players the last match, it was safe to assume they would do the same for the tournament’s favorite to win. That smirk she aimed back at them now seemed too bold for Miyuki who generally could care less what people thought. Yet, the thought of Emi getting hurt made him worry.

“So they got lucky then to make it through?” Sawamura was ever the clueless optimist. When the younger boy looked over at the older boys the serious looks on their face made him realize there was more to it. “What?”

This time Kuramochi decides to speak up knowing that Miyuki was too distracted to hear him. “We’re far into the nationals and normally only the strongest are able to make it this far. Our team showed in the warm up how good they are without us having to know Emi. The other team on the other hand was really messy and missed the goal a lot.”

“They could be like Yakushi and just work really well together during the game.”

“Sure but that last game is pretty weird. Soccer is a contact sport but it’s hard to see half a team get injured in one game. Unless they were playing dirty.”

“The referees wouldn’t miss something like that!”

“Oh we got a newbie in the crowd? Kid soccer has refs but it’s three refs for a whole field. Some things will get overseen. These national refs are also a lot more lenient in some stuff than regular season.” One of the older men that they had been overhearing speaks up. “This team is known to be just a bunch of trouble makers. Their male team was suspended this season for some of the stunts they’ve been pulling in the male division. They’re just girls but they’re tough.”

Sawamura was stuck to grit his teeth, seething at the thought that such dirty tricks were even allowed in such a prestigious championship. He wondered just how this was even allowed but he had faith that the Seido team would pull it off. Emi would talk about her team with pride when the subject was brought up. As an ace he knew she wouldn’t allow this match to be their last. Which was the same thoughts that Miyuki and Kuramochi had. Unfortunately, they both knew that they came to watch a brutal match.

Mochi looked over at the catcher beside him to see his hands gripped tightly while staring straight ahead at the huge field. On a normal occasion he would tease him but there was no room to do so when he was in the same boat.

The match was ready to start when the line of girls entered from the locker room inciting loud cheers from the crowd surrounding them. Sawamura incorporating his own cheers for Emi was blaring.

“Since Emiko came she’s been gaining a lot of attention for girl’s soccer.”

“Yeah it’s part of the reason why the national team wants her so badly. They’ve been trying to keep the support since the Olympic team won gold. They’re calling her the next Homare Sawa.”

“It’s too bad she’s holding herself back here at Seido.”

The whistle to signal the teams to separate caught everyone’s attention back to the field. Emiko was at the edge of the circle ready to move forward with the ball since it was in their possession. “Onishi-senpai!” Sawamura yells loud enough to grab her attention since she turned in their general area. With his obnoxious waving it was easy for her to spot the small group of boys and wave back. “Sit down!” Kuramochi pulls the boy down, embarrassed by the attention he was calling to them.

“It’s starting!” Sawamura yelled out when the whistle blew and the girls maneuvered amongst themselves to push the ball into their side of the half line. It was quick and the opposing side was surprisingly able to keep up for the most part. The forward dropped the ball back to Emi and while she took it up two girls ran back to cover her. Except they didn’t slow down the closer they got. Miyuki could feel his throat close up while he sat further up into his seat. He waited for the impact but it never came. She was so agile on her feet and kept the ball attached to her that it gave the illusion that she had a magnet or string attached to the ball. The look of irritation on the opposing side was easy to read. They chased after her with no use since she sent the ball to a blonde girl on the left ahead of her already on the move.

Everyone on Seido’s team was fast by the looks of it since it was difficult for the other team to catch up to their sprint. It looked like they were prepared for the rough team by how fluid all the older players were moving. The first years were pushed further back than normal to cover for a loose ball. Keeping them out of the picture not having to worry about them was the upper class men's plan. They knew they could hold their own against some elbows when it came down to it and they also knew that they would put more people on Emi leaving more people open to shoot.

“Send the ball to Onishi or Aikawa, they’ll put it away.” One spectator says like the girls could hear.

“That’s the plan dummy but they’re playing it safe.”

“They play a 4-1-2-1-2, they’re far from playing it safe.”

A loud whistle interrupts the bickering pair but Miyuki had been watching the whole time. He stood up from his seat when he saw Emi kneeled down holding on to her stomach. The ball had already been cleared but the whistle was blown since the referees were able to catch them in the action. “What happened!?” Sawamura asks.

“When she jumped up one of them elbowed her in the air and the other girl headed it but she ended up hitting Emi too.” Miyuki answers but his eyes never leave the girl who had slowly got up. Her nearby teammates are already surrounding her but she just waved them off with a smile. This was just the start of the onslaught of attacks she would have to face. It was brutal to watch.

The whistle for the second half couldn’t have come sooner. Emi wasn’t the only one that got hit since the team was able to start slowing her down with the amount of hits she was taking. Miyuki could tell the girls were getting beat up but lucky for everyone no one was hurt. Except now the second half was the start of a new set of painful plays.

“Why aren’t the refs calling more!?” Sawamura was angry at having to watch this dirty play. He was looking forward to watching Emi shine but while she was able to show her talent the moment was soiled with the other team. “They’re not able to call something they can’t see. It’s not fair if they just call a play cause they’re in pain. They’re watching but that team is good at hiding it.”

In the locker room the Seido girls were getting ready to alter their game plan if needed. They were only able to score one point with the team being unable to get the ball safely to Emi. Hamada, who was wiping her face with a towel, was able to catch a glimpse of the growing bruises on Emi’s torso. The ace wasn’t used to being so physical since she was able to maneuver herself with precision. Hamada, playing as a fullback, was able to see the play that slowed her down in the first half. She went down pretty hard and she could see that she lost her breath from the jab. Overall, it was a painful scene to watch and it seemed to worsen with time. They were able to catch up to her more since she was trying to ease the pain in her ribs by jogging. With her being out of the offensive line the rest up front had a hard time scoring. Aikawa forcing a goal was all they were able to do. As captain she knew that she had to do something about getting Emi back into the equation but seeing how beat up she was made her hesitate to ask more of her. They would have to pull Ishizaki up despite their original plan to keep the first years so physical.

“I got it.” Emi suddenly says from her spot on the bench. The rest of the team looked back at her wondering what she was talking about, but the stare she had aimed at Hamada answered their own question. “Emiko you-“

“I’m fine. There’s no need to change it. We’re still winning and they’re just going to get more desperate and aggressive. Keep the plan. It’s my job to keep the game going. If I need to pull back the line I need more than Yoshi since they have a person on her the whole time.” She was tucking her jersey back into her shorts already, getting ready to go back on to the field. Hanada always respected the younger girl despite their senpai’s distrust in her as a first year. Anyone could see that she held the characteristics of an ace more than anyone else. Her attitude was something that made anyone want to follow her. The confidence she had in herself gave everyone around her the confidence to do their best. She was a stable point in their line up and every team knew that taking her out of the well made machine they created would screw up the rest. This was the first time that they succeeded but anyone would be slowed down after getting stepped on enough times with cleats. Hanada knew that they needed to get the attention off her as much as possible and Emi knew that was on all the starters minds. “I can deal with them, just keep holding the line and I’ll keep running around.”

Suddenly a soft voice spoke up, making the pair turn to see Ishizaki. “Onishi-senpai, I know you can handle them but I can’t keep standing by watching you get beat up. I want to contribute more. It’s my game too. Trust me more.”

It wasn’t like she didn’t trust her teammates but she would have rather not had any of her underclassmen deal with this team. They needed to maintain enough players and all of the older girls were prepared for an injury. Everyone walked out of the last meeting with the same thought. The last thing they wanted was to make their 1st year teammates feel like they weren’t good enough. When in fact they were confident that they could take them past this next game. “We trust you. We need you to get past this game and while I would like to stay away from this many people on me there’s nothing that can be done about that.”

“…pull up this half Ishizaki.” Hanada finally says, shocking the ace. “What are-“

“We need more people and that means you too. You’re our playmaker and if she’s willing to do that and get one less person on you, so be it. She’s right, it’s her game too which means it’s her choice. As long as she’s prepared to deal with them we need to do what we can to win.”

There was no room to argue when the coach walked back in with the manager. It was time to go back on to the field, but Emi fell into stride with her captain to have one last word in. “If she gets hurt I can’t promise you I’ll hold back like you wanted.”

“Good. I’m getting tired of being thrown around.”

With that the team made their way back out to the field. The crowd was cheering for their respective teams. Miyuki and Kuramochi had been talking amongst themselves while Sawamura made friends with the older men behind him. Learning soccer chants to use for the rest of the match. When the familiar group of girls made their way to the field the loud echoing cheers were put to use. Kuramochi was going to give him a beat down when they got back to the station while Miyuki was just trying to look away like he didn’t know the boy.

The second match had a different air by the start of the match. It was intense and made everyone in the stands stand at attention of what was to come.

It was a quick start to the match with the opposing side starting off in their attack. The passes were tight and accurate compared to the first match but the ball was easily stolen once the ball came in the wide range Emi was defending. She was able to take the ball up where the two forwards were already waiting for her. The amount of trust they had in her was obvious and they were both in sync with the pass. Quick one touches to maneuver around the defenders on their mark. It was impressive to watch especially when the Seido defense forced the forwards to pull back to the half line as quick as the front attack. Their team’s work ethic wasn’t changing and they seemed to keep everything the same with their formation. All except the first year midfielder that was following with the line of pulling up.

Similar to the beginning of the first half the opposing team was unable to catch up to the Seido girl’s movements. The goalie was stuck to defend for a large portion of the time until a defender finally got a foot on the ball to clear it but Hanada was able to get to the ball before the striker could come close enough. They controlled the match and it seemed almost unfair. Chisaka scored one goal to get them into a more comfortable position. It started to seem like they were giving up with the way the hits seemed to become limited or clean. But that didn’t last long unfortunately.

“Here! Here!” Ishizaki called for the ball loudly on the right side. She was wide open and no one was marking her in comparison to Emi who currently had the ball. Without much thought she passed it on to her younger teammate already moving around faster past the marks to get open, but one of the three pulled back to face the girl head on. There were no dirty plays this half and it seemed like they were being more careful, but that was not the case.

Everyone had let their guard down. The Seido team were an airtight force to be reckoned with that nobody was able to penetrate. They trusted each other and their abilities considering they had talented members not only on the bench but as well as in the stands watching as the second or third string. While they were all capable Ishizaki was fast but she was still young and slower with the ball in comparison to her upperclassman.

Emi was sprinting to get out of the way and looked back to call for the ball but all she saw was the younger girl having her ankle get taken out by a slide tackle. Automatically she fell to the group with a piercing scream and cry grasping onto her ankle. The whistle blew to signal a foul but the damage was already done. Emi along with the surrounding teammates ran up to the crying girl concerned for her well being.

Kamada being the more confrontational of the group was yelling at the referee to have her ejected along with threatening the snickering girl. Kurosawa had to step in to stop her friend before she got herself ejected as well. The stretcher was brought out but Emi was standing silently with a dark look on her face. Hanada, thinking she was regretting her decision to pass, went to comfort the girl. “Em, we couldn’t have done anything different. You didn’t know.” The ace didn’t react to her, instead she bent down beside the girl. “I don’t regret passing to you. You did well. Now I’m going to finish this.”

Hearing her idol say these words to her made Ishizaki cry more. She wanted to do more for the team and wanted to be acknowledged by Emiko more than anyone. The only reason why she hadn’t taken any other offer to play at more prestigious schools was because of her. She saw her in the magazines making her comeback from the rough first season and knew that she wanted to be led by someone that strong. She had always been weak willed and quiet. All she wanted was to play soccer but because of her shy disposition it made it hard to be noticed compared to her flashy counterparts. For some time she wanted to quit but it seemed like fate when she first watched Seido play against the school she was touring that day. It was random and her parents were excitedly talking with the coach from the opposite side while she was left in awe at the flow of the first year midfielder. How she controlled the field and the players in front of her. She wanted to be everything she was and when she saw the shine in her eyes while playing like she was having the time of her life it sealed the deal for her.

She believed in her ace and her senpai so she allowed herself to be carried off the field. A sub was made for her in return but the team was still having a hard time focusing.

Emi’s loud clap got the attention of the team. “Get back to your positions. I’m kicking the ball and I will score so let’s make them wish they didn’t mess with our own.” Walking away to her position in front of the free kick without another word made everyone think they misheard her. However, no one had enough time to react when the ref blew his whistle to give the okay. The ball flies high before taking a sharp turn to the corner of the net. A direct goal from a free kick just a couple of meters from the halfway line. When she turned to jog back to the starting line she said, “Hurry up and get back. We got more time to spare.”

It was always a shock for the girls to see how talented she really was at times. Sometimes they couldn’t help but wonder how she chose to come to Seido but they were definitely grateful to not have to face off with the monster. Rather they followed in her steps to take their positions and were prepared to show off even more. The forwards were too prideful to let Emi get all the glory.

Sawamura watching the interaction was able to see first hand how a world class ace conducted under a stressful environment. He always admired her from the amount of attention she got. In his mind she had to be good but he never realized just how good she was until today. While most would try to get revenge physically she chose to make up for her frustration with class and skill. The score kept rising up with this momentum that was meant to crush them. She set the pace for the team and made up for the shortcomings when they were becoming fatigued. Her endurance seemed endless but she was running more than everyone. Being able to play a game at peak level, in probably her worst condition with the injuries she sustained from the first half. Emi was everything he wanted to be as an ace and he was glad he got to watch her play today. He was able to figure things out for himself now of where he wanted to be. There was a long way to go but mentally he prepared himself.

Miyuki on the other hand was in awe once again of the girl. He never got to see first hand what kind of player she was until now and it was surprising to see another side of her. It made him think back to the first time he watched her in a practice match at school. She had a different air around her than her goofy self she showed in class. A world class ace that seemed almost impossible to reach.

The crowd was in awe at how many points began to rack up in the remaining time left. Even the girls were left dumb struck on how much she turned the tempo up for them. The end of the match ended with a 9-0 score. The other team was completely out of breath by the end trying to chase after the team. They were left with the reality that they were nowhere close to even competing with the national level team. When it was time to bow and shake hands with the team Emiko was one of the few that refused to bow in respect. Her fellow second years that played on the field held too much pride to lower their heads to a low class team. While the other girls didn’t want to do so either they still gave in to avoid backlash. There was no question when they walked off the field without glancing back at their opponents who took it all with a grain of salt.

There was no need to respect a team who didn’t respect them. That was all that was on Emiko’s mind and truthfully their desperation didn’t reach her enough to care. In fact that desperation made her sick to her stomach. Chasing after something that was out of their hands and trying to reach with dirty means was disgusting and made her mood drop. It reminded her too much of her own father and his selfish desires to be a legendary Japanese player. Desperation was a sick thing that made even the best of humanity test their desires.

That foul mood that Miyuki sensed from her was back. He honestly wondered what that was about. It could be from her teammate getting hurt or the other team’s attitude but it didn’t explain the feeling he got from her before the match.

“Wow, ace-senpai really is the best.”

“You’re just realizing that? She’s one of the best in Japan already. I don’t see why she doesn’t just go to the national team already.” Kuramochi says while standing up from his seat.

While their last talk made sense there seemed to be more than what she led on. He was genuinely curious about what her real reason was.

The three of them decided to wait around in the hall for the team to come out. Since it was so far from Tokyo there were very few Seido students waiting for the team. Instead it was full of soccer fans from all over and parents that came to watch. While waiting they ran into Kawakami, Akari, Ichika, and Hina who were also all waiting for the team. Sawamura being the loud mouth is called out to the group to greet the familiar faces. “Kawakami-senpai!”

It was a surprise to see the three boys standing off to the side here. They knew that they were close to Emi but they didn’t realize anyone else would go out of their way to come here during their break.

“What are you guys doing here?” Kawakami asks when the groups merged together. “We came to watch Emi. She invited us a while back. We’re going to head back home but we’ll make it for the final.”

“Oh okay. I’ll be doing the same but the girls have been staying here at a hotel since the first round.”

“Jeez you guys must be rich.” Kuramochi looks at the three girls. They did have a feel about them that said they come from prestigious homes. “Whatever you say. Oh there they are!” Ichiki points out to the group of girls walking towards the entrance. There was a lot of cheering and clapping for the winners who were all waving to their supporters. Miyuki noticed right away that Emi wasn’t in the group though for some reason. Looking around for her thinking she got caught up by fans further back caught the others attention as well. “Where’s Emi?” Akari says out loud what everyone was thinking.

While the team was speaking to fans, interviewers, or family they took the opportunity to find someone who would know the whereabouts of the girl. Hani walked up to Ishizaki who was on crutches to ask, “Hey Hani, how you feeling?”

“I could be better. We’re heading to the hospital to have my ankle checked out and x-rayed properly.”

“I’m sorry. I hope that team gets suspended, they're disgraceful to watch.”

“That’s what Onishi senpai said.” The girl snickers at the thought that Hani, while she didn’t want to admit it out loud, looked up to her friend just as much as she did. “Do you know where she is?”

“Onishi senpai? I think she got caught up by her family further back towards the locker room but she should have been back now.” Hani didn’t know the full story of her parents but she knew that they didn’t really get along well. She nods and bows to thank her while she gets ushered by her coach to a separate car to head to the hospital.

“I’m going to go find her.” Miyuki says while speeding off to find her. Hani didn’t realize he was even there until he said something. The way he rushed to go find her friend warmed her heart. Truthfully it was hard to figure out who was genuine when they approached her. Hani had a hard time keeping friends herself due to her finding out first hand what a real friend even was in the first place. It was why she kept close to her sister instead and eventually the two older girls who became like an older sister to her. They were all well known and liked in their year but they stuck close together because of their unspoken trust among one another. All of them were once the butt of jokes or gossip from so called friends. It was why their dynamic worked. They protected each other from outsiders trying to force their way in. Miyuki was one of those people who never forced his way in. He had a similar air about him that made it easy for the girls to feel comfortable enough to open up enough for him to walk into their fortress. The door was always wide open for Miyuki because Emi seemed to gravitate towards him. At first she thought it was just a one sided attraction on Emi’s part but today she realized that Miyuki had different sides about him she never knew about too.

The catcher was looking around the area trying to catch a glimpse of the raven haired girl. Scanning over the area there was no sight of her anywhere that he started to think he passed by her in his own rush. He was flustered at how he just ran off like that earlier, but he wanted to take this opportunity to get her alone.

Walking around aimlessly not really knowing where he was going he heard a deep male voice while passing by a hallway. “Why are you being so cold to your father? I came all the way here to support you.”

“You didn’t come here for me and you know it. I’m not naive anymore so let’s just cut to the chase.” Miyuki stopped in his tracks hearing the familiar voice. The only difference was that she had a cold expression on her face and a dead like tone. This just raised more questions though. He wondered why she was acting this way but he knew that she wouldn’t act so cold to someone without a good reason. “I just wanted to speak to you about your soccer skills. You’ve really leveled up since we last played together, Koko-chan.”

An exasperated click of the tongue was loud enough to be heard from down the hall before she replied angrily, “That’s because you have been in America since I was 6 with your other family. I hate you being here and I hate that stupid nickname even more. Just go back already.” The echoing of her steps signaled that the conversation was over but Miyuki continued to lean against the wall waiting for her. “Make sure this time you actually tell mother goodbye. Make up a good lie. She’s been sick and I don’t want you ruining her mood with your presence.”

“You know she loves having me. I may stay longer just to help keep her happy and healthy. She would be over the moon to be called a family again.”

“Stay away from us!” Her yell was loud and almost caught the attention of passersby so Miyuki moved to cover for the overwhelmed girl. He heard enough of her private life. “There you are Emi. We’ve been looking for you everywhere.” Stepping into her line of view he was almost startled to see the tears threatening to come out. Those glassy violet eyes that never held any contempt in them were full of anguish and hurt now. This man in front of her was a taller male version of herself but with brown short hair. He was obviously her father but Miyuki felt bitter to look at the sad excuse of a man in front of him simply smiling at his daughter’s anger. He wanted to drag her away from this man and take her far away; so he did. He grabbed onto her hand bowing quickly to the man and dragged her off in a rush to find the rest of the group. That look didn’t fit her. It just put a bad taste in his mouth.

“Thank you.” Taking a glance back at her, the relief on her face showed another side of her he had never seen before. Today he wanted to come here learning more about her and giving in to the curiosity he felt towards her. Yet somehow he became more aware of different parts of her that probably no one really knew. While it was an accident he felt a tad bit closer to her and was able to understand her just a bit more than before. “No problem. Everyone really is looking for you anyways.”

“...Can you do me a favor and not say anything about what you saw?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I didn’t hear anything.” The charming smile struck a chord in Emi’s heart. It was out of character for her to be so flustered about a simple action yet couldn’t help but blush. She always thought he was cute but the way he carried himself drew her in naturally like magnets. She began to feel more aware of Miyuki as a man and she wasn’t sure how to handle that fact yet.

[oydan]

Seido Girl's Soccer Team

Masterlist

[oydan]

Title: Breathe

Pairing: Miyuki Kazuya x OC

Warning: None.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters let alone the entirety of Ace of the Diamond. I only own the OC characters mentioned.

A/N: Support by liking, commenting, reblogging my work. I do requests as well if anyone out there wants anything specific. Hit that follow button so we can interact.

“Miyuki. Do you have a minute?” Both Kuramochi and Miyuki look towards their fellow second year teammates. They looked nervous about whatever the topic was, “What’s up, Nabe? All the way from next door. Kudo and Higashio, too?”

There was a slight hesitation before he changed his mind but no one was able to speak up due to the class representative and her friend interrupting, “Miyuki-kun. These are the groups for the school trip.”

“Kuramochi here.”

“Where’s the kun for me?” Irritated with the clear favoritism but they ignore him instead. “You might have a game during the trip, right? So all the baseball boys are together.”

“Wow, you’re right. This is the same as dorm members. This is terrible.”

“Here, you too-“ She turns to the desk next to them but they’re met with a sleeping Emi. Miyuki couldn’t help but think about Sawamura and Furuya but at least she was able to control herself until the break. “She had a rough match yesterday. It was raining in Tokyo so she got a bit sluggish.” Akari speaks up for her friend. “I’ll take it though. Are we in the same group?” She takes the paper from the class rep already searching for their names. “You should be and I think Matsui is as well.” The blonde nodded her head with a small satisfied smile.

“We’re not going.” Miyuki says, “We don’t plan on losing.” This just puzzled the two even more but Kuramochi just hands the sheet of paper back to them. “Here, you can have it back.”

“Right?” This was aimed at the trio that were standing there watching this all transpire. What they didn’t see was the violet eyes peeking through a curtain of dark locks to read their expressions. “Y-yeah.” The hesitation and by their nervous glances amongst each other she could only guess what may be happening on the baseball team.

“I see. That’s too bad. It was a good opportunity to get to know everyone in class.”

“Whatever! It’s the schedule's fault! The school doesn’t care about us going on the trip. It’s the principal's conspiracy!”

“Shut up would ya.” Emiko finally pops her head up from her desk. His loud yells were ironic when he was always beating up his younger roommate all the time about it. “So loud.”

“You shut up!”

“Good one.”

“Shut up!”

Miyuki just smiles and shakes his head before he turns back to address Nabe. “So what did you need?”

“Sorry, nevermind.” They seemed to be even more hesitant about the topic with so many eyes on them and Emi was able to get a better look at them. She could only assume from her own experience what was going through their minds. Miyuki was just clueless wondering why they were even there in the first place. Sighing in exhaustion she gives him a hint. “You know some people aren’t like you, Yuki.”

That just confused him more but he still asks, “What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said. You have our problems now but there’s some things you can’t understand.” She puts her head back down to rest once again but Miyuki was still confused. “I still don’t get it.”

He didn’t get a reply since she already checked herself out of the conversation now. She was confident that at least one of them would come to him once again when there weren’t so many people.

“You’re an idiot.” Miyuki was taken back at her criticism. “Why am I the idiot here?”

Emiko looked at him like he was dumb, “Uh do you really think what you said was the right thing to say to him?”

“Yeah I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t. I thought you would feel the same way.”

“I do but I don’t think that’s what they were coming to you for that day. Zono is right to an extent. You should have encouraged him but I mean in a way to elaborate.” She takes the notebook off his desk to look at the notes he took before tossing it back, “Those notes aren’t someone that wants to quit. I don’t even understand what the hell half that means but it seems pretty thorough.”

Looking back at the notebook he’s reminded about Ono’s own analysis from the day before. Was he really in the wrong here?

“Look, you're not wrong about what you said. I would have said the same thing but even I’m not blind to see that this guy really is trying. Being a captain is hard I’m sure. It comes with its own trials that I’m sure you hate to deal with but you should be more mindful of others.” Miyuki was pretty set in his way and he could admit he was a bit one track minded at times. He never really saw a need to care about anything beside the success of the team but with the captain title he now had to think about those who, as insensitive as it seems, were not considered as important or as a priority to himself before. He was actually irritated with himself. “How are you so sure?”

“Well it could be because Sawamura was telling me about those two helping him recover.” He knew they were friends but he was wondering when they even had the time to talk. She hardly messaged people. She barely messaged even himself but he never took it too seriously since they were in the same class anyways. “When did he tell you this?”

“Actually ironically enough this morning.”

“This morning?”

“Yeah he caught me one morning when I was on my way to do my tai chi exercises.” That was unexpected to him. He never really thought the two loudest people known to man would actually do something as peaceful as tai chi. The only thing he could imagine would be the two airheads messing around. “I can’t imagine that.”

“What’s that supposed to mean!?” Miyuki just looked at her. There was no need to comment. “Well if you’re so skeptical, come with us tomorrow morning.”

He wasn’t sure what to expect when he decided to join them in the first place but it definitely wasn’t something like this.

When he walked to meet with the pair they were already waiting at the top of the hill. “Took you long enough.” Sawamura turned around and once seeing him looked obviously shocked. “What are you doing here captain!?”

“We don’t yell here.”

“Right. What are you doing here captain?” Miyuki didn’t know what to say so he just followed after Emi. The younger boy was looking at him with his cat-like eyes signaling he was tensed up but he was being ignored for now.

Looking in the corner of his eye at the girl she was abnormally quiet but judging from earlier it must be part of her routine. So, he silently wondered when she started doing this and why. It seemed out of character for her but he was realizing that perhaps he didn’t have her figured out quite yet. The way she talked earlier about Nabe and the others was his first sign.

They went through a 30 minute session of simple movements and finished up in time before everyone else started waking up. Sawamura and Miyuki were already ascending the stairs to head back to their rooms to prepare for breakfast but the older boy noticed Emi sitting at the bottom of the stairs still. He stopped to stare for a moment wondering why she wasn’t following them. “She stays here to relax afterwards.” Sawamura notices him looking back at her.

The sun was starting to come up creating a beautiful sunrise in the distance and he could understand why she would stay here in this spot. It was peaceful and serene. While he didn’t want to bother her too much he couldn’t help but think that this was the opportunity for him to get his thoughts straight. Another part of him thought of using this opportunity to pick her brain and figure out what side of her is her real personality. Lately, he’s been seeing so many different parts of her that made him curious.

“I’m staying for now. You go on ahead.” He tries to shoo him off but the younger boy was already protesting. “She likes to be alone for this part. Let her be you damn fox.”

The two had a stare down to avoid disrupting the peaceful scene but Emi’s melodious voice made their way to the pair. “It’s fine, Sawamura. Come and sit down, Yuki.” The smirk he gave Sawamura just made the other irritated but it wasn’t like he cared.

When he sat down next to her it was silent for some time. Both were entranced by the view and their thoughts. No sound came out until Miyuki said, “Do you always do this?”

“Yeah for the most part. Despite what you think I have a lot on my mind.” The teasing smile held a bit of truth behind it and she wasn’t wrong. He was guilty of thinking she was as dumb as Sawamura at times or at least when they first met he had that impression. “Well, what’s been on your mind? You listen to my problems most of the time.”

“That’s because you’re the main character.”

“I’m starting to get the feeling you’re mad at me.” This makes her laugh and finally look at him. “I’m not mad at you. It’s a natural instinct to react like that, sorry.”

“It’s not a problem for me. I don’t scare off easily.” She stared at him, making him freeze up being looked at for so long. When she turns away with a smile he lets out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding in. “I just have a lot on my mind about the tournament. I used to talk to Shunpei about this sort of stuff but he’s been taking baseball more seriously so I don’t want to bother him too much.”

“Well, I’m not him but I can still lend an ear.” He tries to insist for some reason. None of this would have mattered if it were anyone else beside his teammates, but he felt a tickling in his gut that pushed him towards this.

She seems to think for a moment before she continues, “When I started to get back my edge playing it was because I started doing tai chi. My grandmother used to do it every morning and I always thought it was an old person thing but I enjoyed it. When she passed a lot of things that I found joy in just went away on its own. Soccer was all I had. It was all I cared about since it was the only constant in my life. ‘Everyone leaves’ I would keep telling myself. I suppose that’s why I had such a terrible attitude with my team. I thought I didn’t need them.” Miyuki noticed that she had a sad smile on her face and he wanted to reach out to her to comfort her but it seemed impossible. Instead she just continued on with her story so he retracted the hand that was about to stretch out to her.

“You know when I was getting picked on that year I didn’t really mind but the eyes that were always on me were unsettling. For once in my life I felt like the prey. It was terrifying really but I learned to ignore it and just fought back the way I knew how. When we lost everyone just turned their backs to me and that seemed even more terrifying. I looked for answers trying to fight on my own but practice didn’t do anything. Working out didn’t either. I even closed myself off to Shunpei for some time. It wasn’t until I was out on some random morning runs that I figured out that I couldn’t do it on my own. Some girl was up doing tai chi and at this time I was so lost that I looked up to my grandmother asking for answers. I run every morning on that trail but for some reason it had to be that day when she started that routine. Guess who it was.”

“A ghost?” He teases but she just slaps his shoulder.

“Jerk, it was Akari. She was my first real friend. I started doing the routine with her like I used to with my grandmother but she thought I was weird at first.” She laughs fondly at the memory, “but I kept telling her it was the will of my grandma. Funny enough she believed me so I knew she had to be my first friend. After that I started opening myself up and I just took that as a sign that my problem wasn’t anything with my performance but with myself. I took my teammates to nationals my first year and now that pressure to do it again is really intense. I’m used to people staring at my back but this time I have my team on my back instead. I’m scared that I’ll trip once again and take them all with me but at the same time I’m full of so much excitement that I get to play on a real team.”

“Then don’t look at them as baggage.” He voices his opinion once and begins to think that maybe he should hold back the way she jumps up to glare down at him. The stare was heavy but he didn't back down. This was something she needed to hear. “I never said that!”

“You said you feel like the team is on your back.”

“Yeah but-“

“Your team is strong too, otherwise they wouldn’t be able to stand next to you. I’m sure they work just as hard as you to get to your level and what you’re saying makes it seem like you don’t trust them to stand beside you.” Emi’s hands balled into fist tightly in defiance but she realized for herself that he was right. She acknowledged everyone on the team as high caliber players. They worked their way up to make up for the loss of the third years but in her mind these girls were better. There were no jealous gazes aimed at her back anymore but instead a fury of determination and hardwork that seemed to push her forward. She was blind to think that as an ace she was the only one giving strength to her team. In reality, her gameplay has never been as good as it was now. It was like she was able to see the field clearer now and while she thought it was because of her own abilities perhaps it was her teammates. “I do but I’ve never cared to look back before. I guess I still have a lot to learn, huh?”

Miyuki stands up as well to start heading up the stairs and back to reality. While walking though Emiko says, “I still think you should listen properly to your teammates.”

“Yeah I know that now. Guess I have to learn some things from you too.” She just nods wanting to keep this peaceful atmosphere. “By the way, when did you start doing this with Sawamura?”

“Oh he caught me one morning a couple of weeks ago. I was a bit surprised to hear him call for me so early in the morning.” An awkward smile makes its way on her face as she remembers being scared out of her trance.

Miyuki laughs at the thought, “Yeah he’s got a loud mouth. Sorry about him.”

“Nah it’s okay. Akari’s team is starting to do early practices now so I didn’t have a partner for some time. Besides, I like the kid.”

“Yeah I know. You favor him a lot.”

“Well my instincts are never wrong.” That peaked his interest. He was curious about what she meant. “Don’t give me that look. It’s not something I can really explain.”

“I’m just wondering what you have in mind.”

“I just feel like he’s not as unreliable as everyone sees him as. Especially that new coach of yours he pisses me off. I want to rip his head off. He’s a raccoon.”

“Eh? A raccoon?”

“Yeah, you’re a chimp.” That made him even more confused. He had no idea what she was saying at this point but he was starting to see the Sawamura in her come out. Seeing his face she just laughs it off. “Don’t think too much about it. It’s just a feeling you can’t really make much sense of, but it’s how I figure out who my prey is for a game. It was also another game I used to play when I was little. It just grew on me.”

Miyuki just nodded along. It wasn't like he could understand the logic but he questioned the chimp title. He kept wondering if that was really a good thing. “Oh but apparently this has helped him get his mind straight. I let him join since he was having a hard time relaxing. He’s surprisingly stiff.”

“Oh yeah I know but when he’s able to put on that stupid ‘relaxed’ face it’s a whole another player. He’s almost reliable.”

Thinking back to when she first started teaching him she had an idea of what face he was talking about and just laughed. “Oh I know what you’re talking about. Yeah it was hard to not laugh at him.”

“His eyes are even more blank than usual. It matches what’s inside his brain.” The pair laughs together catching the attention of the awakening baseball boys. Kuramochi paused to make sure what he was seeing was right. The captain was with his little crush. He wanted to shout out to them to make fun of the couple but it was the first time that Miyuki had seemed carefree in a while. He had a lot to deal with on this team and it was hard for someone as introverted as himself having to lead a team. He had the support from both himself and Zono but it didn’t mean he didn’t have his own concerns that he didn’t want to speak to others about. Perhaps if anyone could understand that it would be Emiko.

So instead of disrupting their moment away from their duties he decided to walk to the mess hall for breakfast. Even the captain needed a breather every now and then.

[oydan]

Title: Seido Sports Festival

Pairing: Miyuki Kazuya x OC

Warning: None.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters let alone the entirety of Ace of the Diamond. I only own the OC characters mentioned.

A/N: Support by liking, commenting, reblogging my work. I do requests as well if anyone out there wants anything specific. Hit that follow button so we can interact.

The acclaimed sports festival. Every year without fail the school must separate into four teams: yellow, blue, red, and white. This year 2-B is on the blue team. “Our lucky color!” Emiko yells out excitedly when their class representative picks their team out from a hat. This startled most who weren’t paying close attention, but they all knew that out of everyone she was one of the meatheads that were overly competitive about the entire event. “Sit down Onishi!” Their teacher yells at the ball of energy.

“But teacher this is your opportunity once again to stand out! The woman you desire is watching closely!”

“Shut your mouth and sit down!” Even though he was yelling at her, the blush on the middle aged man was pretty obvious making the class snicker. It was common knowledge their teacher had a thing for the school nurse but the pair were incredibly shy introverts. Emiko was just tired of being picked on by the teacher for everything. The plan was to set them up so he would be more distracted about his own love affair, and perhaps a small part of her truly wanted her teacher to be happy. “You’ll be out of the relays if you don’t keep quiet for the rest of the time.” A very small part of her.

Miyuki who sat in the seat next to her just laughed at the spectacle. She was pouting, doing her best to keep her mouth shut. Their teacher clears his throat before continuing in a bashful manner, “Well despite that we should all follow after Onishi’s passion for the event. The prizes seem to be well worth it all this year.” Telling by her glare she was most likely cursing the old man out inside her head.

From then on the entire class decided on who would be competing in each event. Emiko was the main participant in the running events for the girls while her friend Akari was the main participant for the strength events for the girls. Even though she looked like she was a delicate flower everyone knew that she was the judo champion two years in a row. It was uncanny how strong she was. She wasn’t as expressive as Emi but, Miyuki could practically see the familiar intense aura he would sense from Tetsu or Furuya. The pair of girls were a match made in heaven. It was also why last year their class alone was able to rack up so many points. They dominated in every girls event because of two demons.

“They’re pretty scary, eh?” Miyuki could hear a small group of his classmates talk amongst one another while on break. Kuramochi by this time makes his way to plop himself in the seat in front of him. “Who, Emi and Akari?” Another asks.

“Yeah they’re always so intense.”

“True but I wouldn’t mind being yelled at by either one. It’s a turn on seeing Emi get all worked up the way she does. Makes you think about the faces she’ll make in a really intense moment.” The laughter that came from the group after pissed Miyuki off. He wasn’t dumb enough not to understand what the pervs were talking about. Kuramochi on the other hand looked like he was ready to kill them, but before he could get up Emi came walking by to push his shoulder down for him to sit. “What are we talking about boys?”

“Oh, it’s nothing Emiko. We were just laughing.”

“I know you were but what were you laughing about?” The crazy look in her eyes made them flinch realizing she wasn’t being her normal self at the moment. It got deathly silent. No one dared to speak up about the topic. “I think you understand why I’m asking you about what you were talking about so let’s do this.” Slamming her hands on the desk they were swarmed around made the weak willed boys jump but the death stare she aimed at the disrespectful commenter was enough to make anyone scared. “Don’t speak another word of the bullshit you were just spewing out your disgusting mouth you pig. About me or any other girl for that matter. You overcompensating for your lack of presence isn’t our problem so don’t use us as some way to gain some inches on you, you piece of shit.”

With that the girl walked away to sit back in her seat now. Akari had already sat down in her own chair while Emiko was dealing with the group.

Miyuki and Kuramochi sat in disbelief along with the rest of their classmates that were still in the room. Kuramochi was reminded of the talk she had just a month or two ago with Sawamura of how her attitude was completely different than the version they see now. It wasn’t like he was one to talk though since he had his own delinquent past but it was weird to see her have such a nasty personality. Miyuki was for once in his life speechless. Normally he would find some witty or sarcastic comment to throw her way but he truly had no words. She was brutal. It explained a lot of why she was able to throw her own verbal attacks back at him when they first became aquantained. Except she held her punches…a lot it seems.

“You two suprised?” Emiko turns towards the comical pair beside her. Snapping out of their trance Kuramochi spoke up first, “Didn’t realize you were a fellow former delinquent Emi.”

This seemed to ease the tension between them. From then on the group began to talk like they normally did until class started up again.

For the next week the class prepared for their events during their free time. Everyone seemed to be ready until the day finally came.

“Whahaha, the blue team is sure to win!” Sawamura’s loudmouth echoes throughout the track and field. “Shut up Sawamoron!” Kanemura hits the other boy in the back of the head to keep him quiet.

“The blue team will win!” Another loud shout comes from the group of second years who just laugh at the girl in the center. They part when the ball of energy wants to be free from the group revealing Emiko. Sawamura, seeing his friend, runs off to greet her. “Ace-senpai!” When she hears the familiar nickname she turns to her younger counterpart with a huge smile. “Sawamura! How are you doing?”

“A lot better senpai. You’re also part of the blue team?”

“Oh yeah I would think Miyuki or Kuramochi would have told you.”

“Those two live to make my life hard.” He didn’t realize that the two older males were approaching the pair until he felt the grip on each of his shoulders. Emi could see him sweating bullets by now. “Huuuuuh, what are you telling Em?” Kuramochi interrogates him looking like the former thug he was.

“N-nothing. Bye ace-senpai!” He says while speeding his way back to his classmates. She laughs at the poor kid but still defends him, “You should be nicer to him. He doesn’t mean any harm.”

“Get to know him more and you’ll understand.” Miyuki defends their antics.

“I have a hard time believing he’s the problem.” The accusing eyes on the troublemaker incites a spew of complaints but she had already ran off hearing the president of the school call for attention. “Welcome to this year's annual sports festival. We ask that everyone keep a fair and fun environment for everyone to enjoy themselves. Each event will have a prize made for the entire class. However, the grand prize for the winning team this year will be a BBQ day with meat provided by local butcher Mr Sasaki.” Hearing the grand prize announced made Emiko’s ears perk up in attention. She was practically foaming at the mouth. “Meat.” Miyuki was startled at the intensity she was oozing beside him. With the grand prize being her favorite thing in the world she would most likely be ten times worse than last year.

The group spread out to warm up and stretch before the first event. The third year girls 200 meter was the first to go then right after was the second year. “Run fast, Aoki.” The older girl was surprised by Emiko’s energy but she had never ran faster in her life. Multiple heats for the third years were a mix of results but the blue team girls were racking up the points.

“Oh look, it's Miyuki’s girlfriend next.” Ryosuke points at the raven haired girl. “That’s not his girlfriend. She’s too good for that demon.” Sawamura points out with a flat voice but switches over to his loud cheering when she takes her place to start. “Go ace-senpai! Go, go ace. Go, go ace. Run, fight, win!” The gun goes off signaling for the girls to take off but Emiko was so far ahead of the pack that it was meaningless to cheer at this point.

“Wooooow! Cheetah!” Sawamura runs off to congratulate the girl while Kuramochi calls out to him, “Hey! That’s my nickname. Tch, she’s fast but jeez handing it out like that.”

That’s how it went the rest of the running events for the most part. Emi was undefeated in every heat. Miyuki only participated in the 200 and 400 meter runs while Kuramochi also beat out his competitors in all running events he was in. It was a fun event so far especially when the guys from the baseball team competed against each other in the pole topple event. The teams were split in two so teammates were going against one another and duking it out. Miyuki on the other hand left that to Kuramochi and Sawamura. He refused to do anything from taking his shirt off in front of everyone to trampling on one another for a pole. “Whimp.” Emi had to comment but he chose to smile through it. In the end the red team with Tetsu and Jun won.

The girls event had the pulling of the pole instead and here is where Akari shined. She yanked the pole out from each girl's grasps like nothing. The last pole she went for she dragged two girls from the opposing side along with the pole until they signaled for the end of the match. “Akari! Akari!” Sawamura and Emi's cheers were unison by now and we’re starting to give Miyuki a headache. Kanemura wanted to yell at Sawamura but that would mean doing the same to his senior so he gave up on the idea. The one day he couldn’t control the moron of the baseball team.

“Why didn’t you join this event Emi? I thought you wanted to win.” Miyuki asks, trying to start something to get back at her for the comment earlier. “I’ve got noodle arms.” She waves her arms in front of him as if to show him how weak she was, “Akari said I would just bring the team down so she forbade me. I respect it.”

Sawamura was in the background nodding along in understanding. The catcher had no words or retorts but that was part of her charm. Always leaving him speechless in more ways than one. “…right.”

They participated in the chicken fight, the ball run, a discus throw, shot put, and Emi even got first in the 1500 meter race for her team. It finally came down to the teacher and student mixed relay race. This seemed to be the biggest match for the most points that could make or break a team.

The red team had two 3rd year track athletes along with the track coach and the world history teacher that was supposed to act as a handicap. The yellow team had a 3rd year male soccer player and a 2nd year female swimmer along with the two PE coaches. The white team had the weakest team probably with a 2nd year female swimmer, a 3rd year regular student that wasn’t part of any sports clubs, the first year English teacher, and finally the coach for the volleyball team. The blue team on the other hand probably had the most intense members. Kuramochi and Emi were the student representatives. It went without saying that the two had the aura of former delinquents. The teachers were Ms Hatanaka, the history teacher that everyone was too intimidated to look in the eye, and the baseball team’s very own Kataoka Tesshin.

“Let’s go boss!” A loudmouth shouts out loud making unfamiliar classmates turn to him in shock. They all were thinking the same thing now about the yakuza looking man. Haruichi had to shush him before everyone got the wrong idea about their team. Furuya was too busy sleeping, telling by the nose bubble.

“Looks like the former thugs have come together.” The girl from the red team mocks the pair of underclassmen who turn to give her a dirty look. “What you say?”

“I think she’s trying to mock us Kuramochi. I think the best way to pay it back is to make her eat dirt.” This makes the older girl flinch but the track coach steps in. “Alright that’s enough. Don’t rub it in their face too much that we’ll be the winner.”

“Oh yeah? Why you think that old man? You’re out of your prime, get over it.” This time Ms Hatanaka defends her kids with her own look of distaste for the arrogant coach. “Now, now. Don’t count us out just cause you think you’re all hot stuff.” The PE coach says.

From the outside spectators it was like watching a storm of lightning being cast at one another. Miyuki laughed at the situation already expecting some entertainment from his friends. It will definitely be interesting to watch. Watching Emi all day was already his guilty pleasure so this was double the fun.

“You seem to be enjoying yourself.” Ryosuke pops up out of nowhere again this time with the other third years on the team. “Yeah it’s pretty fun.”

“No, I mean you getting to watch Onishi go wild today. We always miss out on the soccer games since we have our tournaments around the same time. It’s your first time getting to see this side of her.” The slick fox-like smirk on his face was always unsettling but he had pretty much hit the money on this observation.

“Not the first time but yeah I guess.” He tried to shrug it off but he was caught. “Just ask her out. There’s no harm in trying right?” Ryosuke suggests but Jun wasn’t on board with that. “This turd is going to get a girlfriend before me, I don't think so!”

“Don’t be selfish Jun.”

“Yeah. Let the two passions set sail.” Even the spirited captain speaks up now.

The teams all separate to go set themselves up on their marks. The first one up was Ms Hatanaka. Miyuki was just going to ignore them. The gun went off and the blue team was off to a good start. The baton would get passed off to Emi then coach, and finally Kuramochi would finish it off.

When Emi got the baton the lead became astronomical despite running off against the red team’s own track star. Despite how fast she was going everything seemed to be in slow motion to Miyuki. Her long jet black hair was flowing after her, her fit body was tight and showing off her slim figure nicely, the beads of sweat on her temple seemed to be in slow motion. What really got him though was the look in her eyes. Those deep violet eyes were bright and lit up like a fiery flame during the race. He started to wonder how she would look during an intense match and thought about how much more attractive the girl would be in her own element. It was true that more girls would throw themselves at him when they saw him in his gear compared to his normal dorky glasses look. Girls from class would say how different he looks and how attractive he got when he was on the field. He never really understood that logic until he met Emiko. She already was a pretty girl but seeing her now just made her more attractive. He remembers back when his first opinion changed about her just from watching a practice of hers once. It was from a distance but that alone was what set their relationship off in the first place.

Snapping out of his thoughts due to Sawamura’s loud cheering, he noticed that coach had kept their lead big enough for Kuramochi to take over and destroy the other teams. A cheer blew up the blue team's side since they knew that there was no doubt that they won. The boys team did decent but the girls did most of the heavy lifting.

“Meeeeat.” Emiko cheers loudly followed by Sawamura’s own cheers for the grand prize. Miyuki smiled at her going back to normal self so easily. His teammates caught this reaction and shared knowing smirks amongst each other.

Miyuki approached Kuramochi and Emiko along with a bustling Sawamura and his group of first year teammates. This was the time for them to play matchmaker. Tetsu calls out, “First years come with me.” With the help of Masuko they gathered them up despite Sawamura’s protests. Ryosuke and Jun pulled Kuramochi off under the guise to talk about fielding. All leaving Miyuki alone with his crush.

Miyuki couldn’t help but feel embarrassed about the situation. Cursing them for making it so obvious but kept his poker face as normal. “That’s weird.” He couldn’t help but feel relieved she didn’t catch on. “They’re a weird group. I already told you that.”

“Yeah I can’t talk much about that.” The charming grin matched with a bashful rubbing of the back of her neck was a deadly match for his resolve. “I wanted to introduce you all for that reason.”

“Oh shut up.” She says while rolling her eyes, “Anyways how’s the team doing this year?”

The pair walk off to grab water not noticing the baseball team silently cheering them on. Aside from Sawamura who was being head locked by a proud Kuramochi.

“Better than the beginning. Sawamura is starting to get his edge back. He’s becoming more precise but he’s still not confident in his inside ball.”

“That’s good, I heard Chris senpai helped him out. You know he’s going to be a really amazing ace once he settles down.”

“Eh he’s not that reliable.”

“Well he’s a first year student with little or no real technical training. He’s been playing catch up this entire time but he’s learning at an exceptional rate. The yips or whatever he had is part of the process. He got it out of his way before his major years. Once he gets over it I’m positive you’ll see it.” She really was a Sawamura fan to the end. He just shrugs and decides to let time tell. He knew he was talented and full of potential but the ace position was more than just spirit. “We’ll see. Have you decided on if you’ll go to the junior national team yet? “

Sighing in frustration she just drinks the cup of water the school provided before replying, “I’m still deciding. If I do, I'll have to quit the team.”

“Oh…so that’s why you’ve been so on the fence?”

“Yeah it’s kind of frustrating. I wish I was able to play for both but the games and training would just overlap. It’s a great opportunity but…I don’t know if it’s what I want.”

“What you mean?”

“If I go there I know that I would feel obligated to make the next level. I would be expected to. If I made the team, what then? No college? Or travel back and forth for college and take less classes. I mean what happens when I hurt myself? I’m done. At least with college if I played there I would have a degree to fall back on. That seems like the logical choice doesn’t it?”

“Sure I guess it could be.”

“Then there’s the experience from my first year stopping me. I’m different, sure but I’m still pretty rough to get along with.”

“That I know for sure.” He tries to tease the stressed girl which works by the way she lightly laughed and hit his arm. “Whatever. Besides I keep going back and forth between cons and pros but I can’t leave my team.”

He wasn’t acquainted with Em until later on in their second year but he did hear the whispering voices when he first came here. How a snobby first year had taken over the ace position without so much as playing in a game. There were rumors of the rude girl using her connections to get it and even some saying she was selling herself. The gossiping girls of their school were brutal and made him more aware to stay away from them.

He had never met her and was positive they were just rumors until he saw for himself what kind of person she was. All he remembers was a dark haired girl confronting the group of gossiping girls head on. She bragged about herself and how they were below her which is why they were opening their mouths about her. It was already a scene but he later found out it was a group of third years that she was mouthing off to. He couldn’t say much considering he was gunning for the position of starting pitcher over his seniors. Not many of his older teammates liked him because of his attitude either but she was an intense narcissist from what he could tell. He had that idea of her until he saw a shift in her towards the second semester when she started to humble herself after the messy performance she had. Everyone was talking about that saying how her pride must have taken a hit but when he watched her in the halls he realized that perhaps that was her way to protect herself from the judgmental eyes.

By the time second year came they had been put into the same class. There was no sign of her being a raging narcissist but instead she helped others when they needed it, volunteered to do the jobs no one else wanted, and went out of her way to befriend the rest of the class. The turn of attitude surprised everyone but it was hard not to like this side of her. Miyuki on the other hand refused to acknowledge her thinking this was all a fake version of herself but that didn’t exactly go his way in the end. Now she was so tightly wrapped around him that he couldn’t get away even if he wanted to.

Seeing her now worry about her team made him realize that she really was different than before. “If you feel that way there should be your answer.”

Emi looked up at the taller boy in surprise. She was sure he would give her the advice to just go, but despite her own view of what she thought Miyuki was like, she was mistaken. She smiled softly, recognizing her mistake in his character. “Yeah, guess you’re right.”

“Besides, there's always the real national team later on.”

“Later down the line huh? What you expect from me?”

“I thought you were the number one ace. Was that all talk?”

“Oh shut up. I’ll show you Miyuki just wait and see.” She storms off in a huff to join her own group of friends while he just watched her from afar. There was no denying that he admired her but it wasn’t like he could afford to focus his attention elsewhere. Not when he had two pitchers with endless potential that seemed to keep getting deeper the more he dug. The fact she was now having to think about the junior national team or taking her own team to nationals was already going to keep her mind full to the brim. Well, only time could tell. The blue team were rewarded with their BBQ meat and special service by the end. Individual rewards were handed out to the respective winners and with that they ended their day.

[oydan]

Title: Yips

Pairing: Sanada Shunpei x OC X Miyuki Kazuya, Sawamura Eijun

Warning: None.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters let alone the entirety of Ace of the Diamond. I only own the OC characters mentioned.

A/N: Support by liking, commenting, reblogging my work. I do requests as well if anyone out there wants anything specific. Hit that follow button so we can interact.

Masterlist

She should have seen something like this happening. There was no doubt that the once positive pitcher was having a hard time mentally. The opportunities that came so easily to others were being stripped up from right under him. The pressure of not having anyone to depend on was taking its toll on him finally and it was starting to show in his performance. From the moment she met him Emiko could tell he had the spirit of an ace more than anyone on the team. He wanted people to rely on him more, wanted the attention, wanted the entirety of the team on his back, to claim the mound as his own. She had told him the weight of the ace’s job was a heavy load and he was beginning to see that first hand.

It was tough to watch but it was a necessary moment he would have to overcome to be where he wanted. She saw his competition Furuya and it was clear to see why everyone was so infatuated with the first year. He had the talent to be an ace and the burning desire. But it was obvious that if they were to pick who the ace was, the position would go to Furuya.

She wondered if that was something that got to Sawamura. The Inashiro game seemed to do a number on his mental state by the looks of it. The fact that Furuya had done exceptionally well in the start definitely hurt him but the pressure he felt from letting his team down when they needed him must have set him up to fail from the beginning. Watching him get subbed out and walk away with tears running down his cheeks made her think back to her own first season. Her heart clenched at the thought and remembering her feelings in that moment made her feel for the boy.

The rest of the game flew by considering she wasn’t thinking much about anything else beside Sawamura. It wasn’t like she could go out of her way to cheer for Sanada in the first place.

After the game she sat back and listened to the people compliment the raven haired first year for his performance. It was unfortunate and looking at the Seido side she decided she would have to leave this alone for now. He had to get over this on own, on his own time. So instead she got up to meet up with Sanada to say her goodbyes.

Meanwhile, Sanada was helping gather up the team’s things to head home. He wondered what was going on through Emi’s head since he could tell she had drifted off half away through the Seido southpaw turn on the mound. He didn’t seem the same but it wasn’t like he cared much about that. Although the kid was interesting to watch there was no need to worry about him needlessly. He seemed to have his own support system. He just wanted to know if she would be sticking her nose in his business from now on.

The match ended in Yakushi’s favor and while they said their thanks for the scrimmage Sanada found Emi just outside the gate. “Hey there stranger. You came to watch.”

“Hm, yeah.” Startled by his presence it was obvious she had a few things on her mind, “you did good as always ace.”

“Thanks. Now are you going to tell me what you’re planning? I can see your wheels turning.” Tapping her head with his index finger to irk her served its purpose the way she smacked his arm away. “I’m the ace, remember?”

“Then the ace should remember that I fight back.” It was all light hearted teasing but the silence that followed made him realize that watching Sawamura must’ve triggered something for her. “Seriously what’s up?”

“I know I have no right to get involved. I’m an ace but in soccer. I don’t know much besides watching you half ass your way through middle school. We’ve only messaged each other since we last met but…I worry about him.”

It was no surprise that she would hold a soft spot for the kid but it was weird to see her show so much concern about him. Sanada knew that while she was a good friend to him she was pretty self centered and arrogant sometimes. It was why she left his side when she got recruited, why she didn’t have friends growing up, and why so many people didn’t like her in the first place. She thought about herself and her own success only. A one track mind that is only about herself and two feet around her. It was why he felt special when he was the only one to get past her walls to see the real version that she was. The only person she really ever thought about was himself, so a part of him that was also selfish, wasn’t too happy to see this revelation. The other part though was proud of her. There was something that happened when she came to Seido. The part of her that he thought only he could get the privilege to see was becoming common. She wasn’t as closed off to strangers and beating them off with a stick when they came too close. She was opening up more.

“Well why is that?”

“He just reminds me a lot of myself except he’s the version that I’m too scared to show others.” The sad smile on her face made his heart clench. The thoughts he had about being jealous of her growth left his mind. He gritted his teeth realizing how selfish he was being. This was what she wanted when she decided to come here. How could he ever think to alienate her? “I had a feeling you would say that. So what do you plan on doing then?”

“I want to help him but I’m not sure how yet. I’ll figure it out though I have a feeling Miyuki is a little useless about cheering him up.” Sanada chuckles at her comment. He really couldn’t stand to see her so down but this was all part of it. They were both changing in different ways. He just had to go with the flow and continue changing himself so he didn’t have any regrets by the end of it all. “By the way, you better take care of yourself. Don’t push yourself too much. You don’t want me to embarrass you in front of all your teammates do you?”

Snickering at her before he comments, “Please those guys would think of me as the messiah if they saw you coming to take care of me.” The slap on his arm just made him laugh more.

“Sanada! Oh-“ Kazuma stops his yelling to notice the girl in front of Sanada. He couldn’t help but blush in embarrassment when she set her eyes on himself. “Sanada-senpai!” Raichi comes bulldozing through the rest of the teammates who stop short in shock at seeing their ace talk up girl.

“Speaking of teammates. What’s going on Raichi?”

“We got to head home. Who’s this?” The young heavy hitter looks up at the girl that his idol was talking to. He’s never talked to any girl before that showed up to cheer him on. “This is my friend I always talk to, Emiko Onishi. She goes to school here. This is Raichi.”

No wonder she seemed familiar to him, Raichi recalls the picture Sanada kept in his bag for good luck. He just so happened to catch a glance of it when he was packing his bag a while ago. He recalls his dad laughing in amusement and telling him that it was most likely his girlfriend. Judging by the looks of how close they were it must be true. With this the younger boy’s face heated up.

This just confused Emiko but she clulessley smiled at the kid. Sanada thought the world of this kid and his dad, who was the coach. Watching him today made it obvious why Sanada liked him so much. He kind of reminded her of Sawamura and his passion for baseball. “Nice to finally meet you. Well all of you actually. Thank you for taking care of Shunpei while we are separated.” Bowing in appreciation to the team that gave Shunpei his passion seemed like the normal thing to do but meanwhile the rest were flustered and bowing as well when she looked up at them. Emi was happy to see the group in person up close. She knew they were worth the wait when Sanada did nothing but praise his own team. He really was better than before and she knew that it had to do with these guys.

“I should go. Nice game you all. I’ll message you later on.” With a hug and pat on the head to Raichi who turned a brighter shade of red, she was off back to her dorm room.

Sanada watched her as she went off to do whatever she normally did. He took note that her tiny back was a familiar sight but he was getting closer to be able to walk beside her.

“You never said you had a girlfriend Sanada.” Turning back to his teammates he’s surprised by the burning jealousy they’re exuding.

Meanwhile, Emiko took some time to think about what she could do to help the boy. Even during school he looked dead. His eyes held no life in them. It reminded her of her own slump she went through when she first came here. While she wanted to leave it alone and leave it up to his teammates, hearing Miyuki talk about Sawamura with his blunt attitude on the matter made her walk out of the classroom. The anxiety she felt was suffocating her once again.

Before she knew it her legs carried her to the first year classrooms. Walking into the class ignoring the stares from confused underclassmen she stopped in front of the boy’s desk, “I want to show you something after class before you go to practice today.”

Sawamura looked up with his sunken eyes and stared until realizing what she was asking. A simple nod was all she needed before walking back to her class. His mental state was sensitive right now and she knew the only person that could get him through this was himself but it didn’t mean she couldn’t show him that she was supporting him as a friend. Showing him he wasn’t alone on and off the field. When he needed to get away from the anxiety she was willing to listen.

The end of the day came and Sawamura was still stuck in the clouds. He wondered what she needed to show him. Although now he realized he didn’t know where to meet her. Well, he needed to dress up for practice so he just went back to his dorm room.

Once finishing up a knock came from the door. Kuramochi and him both looked at each other confused, considering if it were any of the guys from the team they would have just walked right in. Kuramochi ended up opening the door to Emiko. She was carrying a magazine with her and gave Kuramochi a smile. “What’s up Mochi. Is Sawamura here?”

“Oh yeah. What are you doing here?”

“How gracious of you. I just needed to show Sawamura something. Mind if I come in real quick?” Kuramochi saw the sports magazine in her hand and was confused why she thought something like one of her articles would help out the depressed boy. He wasn’t sure seeing someone else’s success story was what he needed right now but he let her in anyways. Curious of what this was about.

When the pitcher saw Emiko he was a bit shocked she was in the boys dorm room. “It’s fine for now. Don’t worry I’ll hide or something.” She teases before sitting on one of the desk chairs. “I just wanted to show you something.” Handing over the magazine Sawamura saw an image of a crestfallen Emiko on the front page along with the caption, ‘The First Year Dud’.

Kuramochi, who looked over his shoulder at the front page, was in shock. It was a brutal title and judging from the look on her face it seemed to hold a certain bitter memory. Sawamura was also in the same boat not believing that this was the same Emiko in front of him. “What-what is this?”

A sigh left her while she sat back in the chair, “I think it’s pretty obvious. I choked my first year coming here. The coach invited me in my second year of middle school but I was obviously too young. When I accepted it by the time I graduated there were no issues. I played the way I wanted to and I was used to carrying my team to victory. Embarrassing enough I was pretty selfish as a player but the coach didn’t mind it. Instead he fed into my ego a lot. I took a spot from a third year who was the ace at the time. I was happy to take over of course but the rest of the team who were also third years didn’t take well to me. I was used to getting picked on though so the bullying didn’t hurt my feelings. I just laughed it off but…they went out of their way to embarrass me in the final half of the season. I played on my own but high school is on another level than middle school. Soon I just kept messing up from simple penalty shots to dribbling the ball. The pressure was suffocating and I wanted nothing more than to give up the ace position.” The distant look in her eyes showed a hint of pain in them. Her violet orbs were a darker shade now.

Kuramochi didn’t really know Emiko this far back but as long as he’s known her she was supposed to be a superstar of their school. The national team was looking at her. Her teammates now looked like they respected her. He couldn’t really imagine the normally bright girl as a loner. Sawamura on the other hand listened carefully to her story. Taking in what she was saying and wondering how she got to this point. Flipping through to the main story the pictures were all taken in the worst possible time. The one that struck a cord though was of her walking away from a team cheering in the background. What caught his eye was the sunken look on her face. Her eyes were dull with no life behind them.

“I told you a while back that the ace position is a heavy load. Well I didn’t know exactly what that meant until we lost. The girls that did everything to get me off the field blamed me for not doing my job. It’s an interesting concept, huh?” Her laugh was dry with no emotion behind it, “I wanted to show you this cause I wanted you to see that it’s common for any ace to deal with this but also to tell you that your problem can only be fixed by you. You have the control to get out of it if you want but you need to stay out of your head. Take this moment and learn. You’re far ahead of where I was here mentally. You’re stronger because you already have something that can’t be taught. You have the heart of an ace and you haven’t even truly been given the opportunity to be one yet. Ace’s all go through the wringer so take this and get your revenge for the next year. Climb to a position so high that no one can look down on you ever again.”

The young pitcher gripped the magazine tighter in his hands and took one last look at the picture of a defeated Onishi. It was like looking into a mirror. It looked like she had lost the will to play but here she was as one of the best players in Japan. “Yes ma'am.”

She smiled, patting him on the shoulder while getting up. “This talk won’t magically make you do better but I hope you will slowly start to build your confidence again. That’s kind of up to you and that catcher of yours. He’s a little jerk sometimes but he cares about you. Don’t tell him I said that.”

Sawamura gets up to stand in front of her with his head held higher than before. His eyes weren’t burning like they normally would but she could see small embers return. “I’ll get back to where I need to be. Thank you, Onishi senpai.”

“No thanks needed. Just looking out for a new friend. It’s normal to do that right?” While for most it was a rhetorical question Kuramochi had a feeling she was genuinely looking for that answer. Naturally he threw his shoulder over her shoulder to pull her in for a side hug that caught her off guard. His hyena-like laugh booming, “You hear that Sawamura, got someone in your corner.” Seeing his two senpais in front of him now made him smile.

Feeling like her job was done here, the ace decided to head out now. They had practice to get to and so did she. “Alright I’m heading out. Remember if you need someone who’s not on the baseball team or just someone to talk to I’m here kid. I’ll even let you train with me.” Leaving with a wink she headed back to her dorm room to change.

“Emiko?” Miyuki calls out for her while also questioning what she was doing in the boy’s dorm area.

“Hey Kazuya. I was just showing Sawamura something.” His sharp eyebrow lifted in question but he didn’t push further knowing it had to do with the slump he was in.” Long time no see. Am I allowed to talk to you now?”

“No.” That turned her to stone for a minute until he laughed at her face, “I’m kidding. I don’t mind much, I guess it didn’t matter in the end.”

“Well you still got one more year. I got to go for real now or I’ll be late. I’ll talk to you tomorrow at school!” He kept an eye on the girl while she ran off. She really was a handful but he didn’t mind too much with her.

When he went to practice later on he could see a small change in Sawamura’s mood. He was still quieter than normal but there was some life left in him. Wondering where it came from Kuramochi noticed his gaze settled on the pitcher. “Em came to see him earlier before practice. She showed him some magazine that did a news cover on her in our first year.” This made Miyuki grin, hearing that it had to do with her. It explained why she was in the dorms earlier. “I see. Well a few words aren’t going to do much with this moron.”

“Yeah she was aware but I think it gave him a clearer view on what’s in front of him.” Sawamura was still having his own practice and they both turned in his direction to see he was still running. They weren’t sure when he would get back to normal but they had hoped it would be soon.

“Sawamura fighting!” A loud feminine voice yelled out echoing through the baseball for everyone to hear. The unison of girls yelling following suit caught everyone’s attention. Even Sawamura was surprised to hear the shouts but when he was able to see the raven haired girl leading her team on one of their runs his heart skipped. There she was ahead of the group with a huge smile aimed at him. Her story of being the complete opposite of what he knows her as now today made him realize earlier on that he would be able to do the same. Everyone did compare the pair and while he didn’t understand it at first, he was thankful for it. Not only that but getting to see her open support of him made him keep going. He needed to sort the mess in his head so he could get the opportunity again.

Miyuki on the other hand knew what she was doing. The pitcher seemed to have a hard time getting past the fog in his head to see further ahead past the mistakes he’s made so far. The display she showed him was to encourage him, but also to show him that she got over the hump she had to face her first year. Making it to nationals by her own sheer will she paved for her and her team. He couldn’t help but laugh, always finding a way to upstage him. He’ll have to thank her later but for now he’ll have to take advantage of the weight she was able to take off the shoulders of Sawamura.

[oydan]

Title: The Old, The New

Pairing: Sanada Shunpei x OC, Slight Miyuki Kazuya x OC

Warning: None.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters let alone the entirety of Ace of the Diamond. I only own the OC characters mentioned.

A/N: Support by liking, commenting, reblogging my work. I do requests as well if anyone out there wants anything specific. Hit that follow button so we can interact.

Masterlist

“That was a good match. That school wasn’t even on the map in terms of athletics. Their teacher looks like that old librarian that used to chase us out of the library.” The loud, high pitched laugh was familiar to Sanada and made him feel nostalgic.

Emi and Shunpei had been friends since they were in elementary school and middle school. It wasn’t uncommon to see the pair causing trouble together growing up; well Emi causing trouble while Shunpei had got caught up in her antics. “Yeah, he really hated you.”

She laughs at the memory while pointing out, “And he hated you because you were always around me.”

That’s how it always was for the pair. Emiko was always loud and looking for a new adventure to cure her boredom. He had never minded though since he found it all amusing, and partly because he had feelings for her. While he likes to think he was pretty obvious about it, he remembers she wasn’t the most attentive. Ever since they were younger she always ran forward without a care in the world, never looking back. It was that way of recognizing his feelings to how she played. Always standing tall above everyone around her.

“That’s how it normally is, isn’t it? You bulldoze over everyone in your way and I clean up right behind you.” He was always the level headed one and while she was playing on boys soccer teams growing up there were plenty of people he had to step in for to protect the spontaneous girl. Meanwhile, Emiko crosses her arms to think back to all the times he helped her out when she was being too insensitive.”I guess that’s true. Sorry about that. But hey you don’t have to worry about that now. I got my own group of friends at Seido.”

It was true that she had become a lot more well liked and popular at Seido. She did have a rough first year that had originally worried him. He actually asked her to come to Yakushi because of the hard time she was having, but her persistent personality had come in handy. Now she was breaking walls and going further beyond his reach. She was already in talks with the Junior National team about joining them.

“Yeah I’m proud of you,” He says while patting her head. “You’re not having a hard time anymore, right?”

“Nope. All good here. How about you, your match against Seido I could tell something changed.”

“Hm, how could you tell with just a game? You never come to watch me play now that you’re friends with those guys.”

“Hey, it’s hard to go watch you all the time. The games I watch are on my way back to my dorm so it just works out.”

“That’s true.” He smiles at her already knowing this fact but it didn’t help that lately she had been talking a lot about that catcher. The jealousy he felt was already there. “Well, to be honest, while it’s disappointing that we ended our season already. I'm looking forward to the next season.”

The whistle of approval embarrassed him, still not used to talking so seriously about baseball. Especially talking to her who has seen him in every stage of his baseball career. “Wow, to think Shun would take baseball so seriously.” He just ignored her teasing looking ahead without taking a second look at her. Emiko on the other hand was looking up at the taller boy with a pleased look on her face. “You’ve come a long way so I can’t help but be proud of you either.”

The blush on his cheeks wasn’t going away anytime soon and he wasn’t about to show her how flustered she made him. She wouldn’t stop if she knew.

“What do you want to do after this?” She asks suddenly.

“I don’t know, do you want to go do some karaoke like we used to?”

“You choose whatever you want. This day was for us to catch up but also to cheer you up.”

“You thought coming to watch Seido play would make me cheer up?” He deadpans, while she looks like that thought never crossed her mind. Snorting in amusement he just shakes his head at her.

“That’s…a good point. Well I wanted to watch them play today but we already made plans to catch up. I’m also a bit bitter that Miyuki said not to talk to him until the tournament is over. I just made a new friend too.” Her pout was cute Sanada takes a mental picture before replying, “Who that southpaw? I can see why you would like him.”

“Everyone says we’re similar and they were right but he’s a bit different from me I suppose.” Before he could ask what she meant they stop in their tracks realizing they had come face to face with Miyuki in the middle of a showdown of some sort with the Inashiro players.

It was an awkward situation to be in and Sanada knew the raven haired girl would open her mouth and stir something up. Instead he tried to usher her off to the side to get away but that’s not possible. Trouble seemed to follow Em around.

“Oh, you’re that girl from before! I thought you were Miyuki’s girlfriend.” The blonde ace exclaims while pointing at her. “Is this your real boyfriend!?”

“Huh? He’s my friend. Shouldn’t you know about him, he’s a pitcher too?”

“No, I don’t know regular pitchers, they all just mix in together. What team are you even on?” Sanada wasn’t too surprised by his personality but it didn’t mean he wasn’t irritated nonetheless about it. His pride was injured by the jab that he was insignificant enough not to be remembered. He was planning on walking away but she had other plans.

She got closer to him which seemed to fluster the blonde but her words were crossed, “His name is Sanada Shunpei. Ace pitcher for Yakushi High, remember that.” She turned to Miyuki who was watching the interaction, surprised by her change in personality, “You should get better friends Miyuki. They’re despicable.”

The intense look she had on her face was foreign to Miyuki who is only used to her goofy personality. It was a frosty dead eye glare that made him flinch before he regained his composure. She really was overprotective of her friend and he couldn’t help but feel irritated by that for some reason.

Emiko sized up the immature blonde before pulling Sanada off wherever they originally planned on heading to. Miyuki’s eyes followed their disappearing figures, analyzing what they were even doing here in the first place. The last person he expected to see at their game was Sanada. He guessed that she had dragged him down here to watch and it really irked him more than it should have, seeing the way he pinched her cheek as they walked up the stairs to leave the stadium. While he thought he hid his distaste pretty well, Narumiya could see through his facade. “Well it looks like there’s something that finally can get through to you. They look close.”

“They are. I knew that already, is there anything else you wanted to say?” He just smirked at his disregard for the situation and decided to move on. The team needed to head back to their dorms, “Even without you we have the ultimate team. We’re going to Nationals.” Miyuki scoffs slightly at the proclamation thinking that the boy hasn’t changed. While they all walk away, Shirakawa's comment about him regretting not joining them only served to fire up the catcher.

He didn’t have time to think about the girl or her relationship with the other pitcher. Telling her to keep their distance for the time being seemed to be the best call he had made. At least that’s what he was telling himself.

“I feel so much better.” The trio of first years finally make their way out of the bathroom, “It’s that white haired guy! What were you talking about with them?” With that Miyuki just started to walk away back towards the bus trying to ignore the loudmouth’s yelling. Miyuki had too much on his mind to even think to entertain his antics. But one thing was for sure, he didn’t regret coming to Seido. He followed after Chris and Rei to get stronger. Seido was the best place for that to happen.